Deleting Threads Profile Requires Deleting Instagram Account

The hype around a new social media platform can be so intense that users don't even think about the details. Some people who jumped on the Meta’s Threads bandwagon this week are already complaining about it.

Ever since Elon Musk took over Twitter, a bunch of alternative platforms have moved into the microblogging space. Hive and Mastodon are among those trying to attract disgruntled users. And, it appears that there are many disgruntled users. But when it comes to getting a massive early following, Threads is killing it. According to Mark Zuckerberg, they hit over 30 million sign-ups on Thursday morning.

As word got out about Threads, so did a little tidbit in their privacy policy that caught people's attention. The policy says, "You may deactivate your Threads profile at any time, but your Threads profile can only be deleted by deleting your Instagram account."

Some people who downloaded the app learned that deleting it was more complicated than they thought.

Twitter user @emilyhughes was one of them. “I deactivated my threads account already but it turns out you can’t delete your threads account *without also deleting your Instagram account* so maybe just don’t sign up!”

Others accused Zuckerburg of creating a “trap” to keep user information on Meta servers. “We can’t delete our threads account without deleting our ig?? they knew people would instantly hate it so they made it a saw trap,” @ecto_fun tweeted.

TechCrunch reported that all the fuss about the policy made Instagram head Adam Mosseri step in and talk about it. "To clarify, you can deactivate your Threads account, which hides your Threads profile and content, you can set your profile to private, and you can delete individual threads posts – all without deleting your Instagram account." Mosseri explained. "Threads is powered by Instagram, so right now it’s just one account, but we’re looking into a way to delete your Threads account separately."