What can i do if i can't delete an old social profile without email access?

[ElizabethFT]

I’ve been trying to clean up my old accounts and found a social media profile from a decade ago that I can’t delete because I no longer have access to the email I used to sign up. It’s unsettling to know it’s just sitting out there with my old photos and posts, part of my permanent record. Has anyone else dealt with this kind of digital ghost?

[JeffreyTW]

I ran into this a while back. An old profile from college, and I couldn’t log in anymore because the email died years ago. I contacted support, uploaded a couple of IDs to prove ownership, and waited. They scrubbed most public stuff and loosened it behind the scenes. It still felt odd seeing that ghost, but it was quieter.

[Mia_T]

I didn’t get full deletion, but I tightened privacy on my newer accounts and muted that old one. It lowered the sting whenever I ran into it.

[Mark.L]

Sometimes I wonder if backups and data retention are the real hurdle, not the login itself. It feels like that stuff sticks around even after you think it’s gone, but I can’t prove it.

[AndrewFJ]

Do you think the problem is more about feeling in control of your past than about where that profile sits today?