WhatsApp is one of the applications that nowadays almost does not lack in any smartphone, even some models already have the application pre-installed. However, despite having become the most used communication tool from our mobile phones, one day we may find ourselves with the need to want to eliminate it completely. Next, we are going to show all the steps to follow to delete your WhatsApp account.
When we refer to deleting the account from the messaging application, we must first think about whether we want to completely delete the account or if what we really need is to deactivate it . There are big differences between deactivating and deleting an account, therefore, first of all it will be good for us to know very well what we want to do so that we do not have to regret later.
The main difference, although there are others, is that the fact of deleting an account means that we can no longer recover it later, while if we deactivate it, the account is not completely deleted. That said, we are going to show below the steps to follow to delete or deactivate your WhatsApp account and what each of these two actions entails.
Steps to follow to delete your WhatsApp account
If what we want is to completely delete our account, these are the steps we must follow:
- We open the messaging app on our mobile.
- From the main screen we touch on the menu button .
- We access Settings> Account> Delete my account .
- Next we will have to choose our country .
- Enter our phone number in international format.
- We tap on the DELETE MY ACCOUNT button .
Consequences of deleting your account
Once our account has been deleted, we must bear in mind that:
- Our account will be removed from the application.
- The message history will be deleted .
- All groups will be removed .
- The backup from Google Drive or iCloud will also be erased .
- You will not be able to regain access to your account
- Although it may take up to 90 days for all the information in our account to be deleted from the servers. Our information will not be available during that time either.
- For legal reasons (eg to investigate cases of fraud and illegal activities) WhatsApp may retain our information.
- Personal information that we share with other Facebook companies will also be deleted.
How to deactivate a WhatsApp account
If our mobile phone has been stolen or we have lost it and we want to make sure that our messages and WhatsApp account do not fall into the hands of just anyone, it is best that we deactivate our account.
To do this, the first thing we have to do is contact our operator and request that they block our SIM card. After it is blocked, it will no longer be possible to verify our WhatsApp account on that phone, since it is necessary to receive an SMS or a call with the activation code.
From that moment on, we can do two things:
- Use a new SIM card with the same phone number to reactivate the WhatsApp account on another device . In this way, we will be deactivating the account of the lost or stolen mobile, since it can only be activated on a single device.
- Contact the company via email. The shipping address is [email protected] and in the subject of the message we must indicate « Phone stolen / lost: Please deactivate my account «. In the body of the message, we will have to indicate our telephone number in full international format.
What does it mean to deactivate your account
- The account is not completely deleted .
- Our contacts will still be able to see our profile .
- Our contacts can send us messages and they will remain pending for a maximum period of 30 days.
- If we reactivate our account before it is deleted, we will receive all pending messages on the new device and we will also continue to have all our group chats.
- If we do not reactivate our account within 30 days , it will be deleted entirely
