Meta will launch separate account deletion for Threads by December this year.
Currently, in order to delete their Threads profile, users have to delete their Instagram account.
Separating Instagram and Threads accounts at the launch was technically challenging for Meta.
Following the launch of Threads, Meta received backlash for not offering users the option to delete their Threads account, forcing them to delete their Instagram account instead. Meta is now working on introducing a separate account deletion feature for Threads, set to be available by December this year.
During TechCrunch Disrupt held last week, Michel Protti, Meta’s chief privacy officer for product, announced that Meta is actively developing and planning to launch the capability to delete a Threads account by December, reports TechCrunch.
Also read: You can now switch between multiple profiles on Threads
Given Threads’ close integration with Instagram, Protti explained that Meta deliberated a lot about how to address deletion requests initially. He said that separating these two accounts at the launch was technically challenging. As a result, the company initially implemented tools like deactivation and the option to set accounts to private as alternatives to account deletion.
Also read: Threads new features released: Mobile notifications and post quoting on web enabled
“Technically, it was extremely challenging to allow deletion of a separate Threads account without also deleting your overall Instagram account out of the gate. So we paid particular attention to ensuring the user could still exercise their deletion rights, by deactivating the account to sort of hide all content, setting it to private or deleting individual threads,” Protti said.
Protti further mentioned that while Meta is in the process of integrating Threads with the fediverse, the company is also evaluating scenarios like what happens when a Threads post goes to another server and is then deleted by the author.
Following its July launch, Threads experienced rapid growth, attracting over 100 million user sign-ups. However, the platform’s popularity has decreased during the past few months. Despite Meta’s efforts to enhance the user experience by introducing features like a following feed, a web app, and full-text search, the level of user engagement has not met the company’s expectations.
Also, during a recent AMA session on Instagram Stories, Instagram head Adam Mosseri acknowledged the need for improvements. He outlined Meta’s intentions to provide better account recommendations, make messaging easier, and develop an edit button for posts, the report said.
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Ayushi Jain
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