How to Delete or Deactivate Your Apple ID Account and Data

[MacRumors]

Apple has launched a new Data and Privacy website that enables users to request a copy of all of the data associated with their Apple ID accounts that the company maintains on its servers. The page also provides options to delete or deactivate an Apple ID by following the step-by-step instructions outlined below.

While any customer anywhere can delete an Apple ID account, Apple says the ability to deactivate an Apple ID account is limited to accounts with locations set in the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland. Apple intends to roll out the deactivation option around the world "in the coming months."

Keep in mind that deleting an Apple ID account and any associated data is a permanent, irreversible* action. After your account is deleted, Apple can't reopen or reactivate your account or restore any of your data, and you will no longer be able to access any of the content and services listed below.

Click here to read more...

Article Link: How to Delete or Deactivate Your Apple ID Account and Data

 

[DipDog3]

So what happens when hackers access your account and delete it?

Of course, better for the hackers to "deactivate" your account instead of deleting it, so they can hold the access code for ransom.

 

[Kabeyun]

So what happens when hackers access your account and delete it?

The same thing that happens if a hacker deletes any other account: it’s deleted.

Won’t happen though. We’ve been able to delete our Apple accounts for years. How many reports of this have you heard?

 

[macduke]

How far can this be taken? Can you import this downloaded data into another account? I've got two Apple IDs because I was an idiot when setting up my accounts. I setup my iTunes Apple ID that uses a non-Apple email address in the early 2000s and my .MAC account a few years later when I got my first Mac. So I've got all these purchases on the first account and all my iCloud data on the second account, along with an account name I'd like to keep because it's shorter and ends with @mac.com. Could I, in theory, download my data from my iTunes/App Store account, delete it, and merge that into my @mac.com account? Or download/delete my old @mac.com account, and create a new account and import the data from both of those accounts and it will maintain the iCloud/iTunes/App Store data from both but under a new user name? This has been a hassle for so many years! If they never sort this out, when I strike it rich I'm going to just rebuy all my content on my iCloud account.

 

[Richdmoore]

Unless someone kept the receipt to get apple to remove the activation lock (as the original owner, not an eBay/craigslist purchase) if they delete there account they will brick the iOS device after a wipe/restore.

I suspect there will be some threads on here of people who do exactly that, deleted the account before remembering about the activation lock.

I am surprised apple hasn't worked out some method of not bricking the device in this case before rolling this feature out.

 

[rhyzome]

i have 2 apple IDs. If I delete my old one, can I reuse the email address (@icloud.com i think) with my current Apple ID or will the old email address/ apple id name be locked?

 

[TeeHawkZ32]

The same thing that happens if a hacker deletes any other account: it’s deleted.

Won’t happen though. We’ve been able to delete our Apple accounts for years. How many reports of this have you heard?

When an account is requested for deletion, there will be a 7 day waiting period before the process is completed so the owner of the account can request it be cancelled.

 

[CarlJ]

i have 2 apple IDs. If I delete my old one, can I reuse the email address (@icloud.com i think) with my current Apple ID or will the old email address/ apple id name be locked?

Very likely you won't be able to reuse it. They have historically been extremely reluctant to let email addresses be reused - even when it's the same person, or family members. You can ask them, but I expect the answer will be, "sorry, we can't do that."

What I did, long ago, is to get a personal domain and set up forwarding from me@example.com to one of my Apple IDs. That way, my publicly visible address will remain stable forever, but I can redirect to a new/different back-end server at my whim (have been using iCloud as the back-end to take advantage of the push notifications for new email).

 

[Kabeyun]

When an account is requested for deletion, there will be a 7 day waiting period before the process is completed so the owner of the account can request it be cancelled.

Might not help if the hacker intercepts the notification.

But as I said, won’t happen.

 

[riverfreak]

So has anyone downloaded their data to see what Apple retains, above and beyond the obvious things like purchases?

And does the data tool allowing you to selectively purge data like Google (sort of) allows? I really wish that they’d let you delete purchases. So annoying having to go through and “hide” apps that are now defunct.

 

[4254126]

So has anyone downloaded their data to see what Apple retains, above and beyond the obvious things like purchases?

And does the data tool allowing you to selectively purge data like Google (sort of) allows? I really wish that they’d let you delete purchases. So annoying having to go through and “hide” apps that are now defunct.

I've currently got a case open with this after I wrote Phil Schiller an email on this exact question. He never replied but I got contacted by the "sub-manager" of the App Store. They are aware there are cases where this is needed/useful. I hate having all that trash and old apps cluttering my Apple ID.

 

[timeconsumer]

How far can this be taken? Can you import this downloaded data into another account? I've got two Apple IDs because I was an idiot when setting up my accounts. I setup my iTunes Apple ID that uses a non-Apple email address in the early 2000s and my .MAC account a few years later when I got my first Mac. So I've got all these purchases on the first account and all my iCloud data on the second account, along with an account name I'd like to keep because it's shorter and ends with @mac.com. Could I, in theory, download my data from my iTunes/App Store account, delete it, and merge that into my @mac.com account? Or download/delete my old @mac.com account, and create a new account and import the data from both of those accounts and it will maintain the iCloud/iTunes/App Store data from both but under a new user name? This has been a hassle for so many years! If they never sort this out, when I strike it rich I'm going to just rebuy all my content on my iCloud account.

Same situation here. At first they didn’t allow .MAC accounts to be used. So I signed up for my iTunes account with another email. I’d love to be able to merge the accounts together.

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

So, not sure if this is a deal breaker. My mom died almost a year ago now, and just a month ago, I deleted her AppleID. Then I found an iPad, and it's requesting me to 'validate her AppleID', which I obviously can't.

How do I remove her account from the iPad? I tried DFU mode, and it's not looking like it's working. It allowed the update, which is progressing, but I don't have any faith that it has wiped her ID from it.

Dang...

 

[MickeyT9]

Very helpful for me... having to delete a child account, primarily because I have changed ISP providers, and can no longer access that email account... which means.... that Apple ID is dead in the water...

I simply cannot believe how difficult it is to deal with Apple in this situation... in particular, their Apple ID system. It would have been so much easier, if we could have 'merged' accounts. Not to mention the money wasted on apps we can no longer access. On top of that, there seems to be 'no way' to reasonably communicate with Apple about any of this. They are simply a 'brick wall' of ignorance.

This article was extremely helpful to me. Mainly because it lays out every step.

Still, this 'undertone' from Apple, about the perils and pitfalls of deleting an ID... They seem to ask you so many times, "are you sure?"... that it's taken many attempts to finally take the plunge. "No, I'm really NOT sure... and actually, I don't want to lose all of my purchases, and torch all history of ever having existed"...

 

[Tech198]

In my case, i couldn't access my AppleID after 3 days..

It may take the full 7 days to delete, ("the process"), but you may/or may not have have acess for the full 7 days.

However, there is no way to verify..... is IS gone... Just became you can't signin doesn't mean content is not there being deleted..

From my on privacy perspective, I'd rater verify myself.. particularly when it comes to personal info, credit cards, AppleID credit etc... and other privacy.

In relation to all the confirmation requests, i can't understand it either. No one takes that long to understand if they are sure with something..

Yes, i'm sue, Just delete the damn thing.