How can I permanently delete my facebook account?

[Irock]

facebook allows you only to deactivate your account is there a way to permanently delete it?

[Allison M]

HOW TO DELETE (long version)

Go here (working link above):
http://www.facebook.com/help/contact.php...te_account

Click "Submit" and follow the instructions.

Your account will be deactivated for two weeks, and if you DO NOT LOG IN during that period, your account is permanently deleted. I REPEAT: don't panic if your profile isn't deleted right away! You must NOT try to log in to your account for at least two weeks, as it will cancel the deletion request. If you want out - stay out, mmmkay?

This method is official and should be complete, i.e. no need to delete individual photos, comments, messages or items from your profile or anywhere else on Facebook! If you have any concerns whether your stuff is actually deleted (as opposed to being kept somewhere in the deep dungeons of Facbook's HQ) your best bet is to ask them using email: info@facebook.com.

[Jon]

It's not going to be easy, I can tell you that. I once read an article online about how scandalous facebook is, and one of the main topics was how hard it is to actually delete, not deactivate, an account.

Basically, you'll need to e-mail Facebook saying that's what you want to do. The person who wrote the article I read, when he tried doing that he had to have a back-and-forth argument with Facebook for a good amount of time before they would allow him to do it.

Once they agree to delete it, you have to take everything off your Facebook by hand. Every picture, every blog, every single thing you ever put on there must be taken off by you personally. Have fun.

Once you've done that, e-mail them again and they should take care of it. They will/probably will keep any information they got from you during the time your Facebook account was active. Facebook is known keeping private information on all those who have an account. That's one of the many reasons why I've never gotten one.

Hopefully they've made the deletion process easier, but as far as I know this is still the way it's done. Good luck.

[Bookbinder]

This very point was covered by "Computeractive" Magazine (it's a UK computer magazine) in the issue of 19. March - 1. April 2009 (p43). This is what the magazine said:
(1) Got a Facebook account and want to get rid of it? For most people, the first step would be to click the Settings button on the Facebook menu bar and then click on the Deactivate link at the bottom of the settings list. However, this doesn't actually remove the account - instead, it puts it into cold storage, preserving all the settings and personal information in case anyone has a change of heart. Lots of people don't fancy the idea of having that info tucked away somewhere, just in case.
(2) To completely delete a Facebook account, use the browser's Back button to return to the main Facebook page and then click the Help link. When the page opens, type 'delete' into the search box at the top and then press Return. After a moment, Facebook will display a set of instructions that explain what to do and what happens to the account. Read these carefully and then proceed by clicking the 'here' link at the end of the paragraph.
(3) At the next screen, click the Submit button to continue and then at the next screen, type in the password associated with the account that's going to be deleted and then type in the required capture words. This is now the last chance to cancel. Still want to delete the Facebook account? Click the Okay button and after a moment the Permanently Delete Account dialogue box appears. Click Okay to finish up. Note that Facebook still retains the data for a further 14 days. Don't log on during that period and on day 15 the data gets zapped - forever.
That's what "Computeractive" Magazine said about deleting a Facebook account. I've never been on Facebook, so I haven't tried these instructions, but I have no reason to think that they won't work. "Computeractive" advice is very reliable. Best of luck.