If you shop online, you probably have an account with Amazon, but also accounts with one or more other online retailers. Unlike brick and mortar stores, where we can walk in, not use a rewards card, pay with cash and have a little anonymity other than being captured on CCTV, online accounts require us to disclose personal information like our email addresses, phone numbers and sometimes birth dates or more, like our credit card information. They also hang around. We create them and unless an e-store shutters its site, most of the time we can return years later and access an account by entering a username and password. If we forget a password, no problem. Clicking on the reset button is usually a pretty painless experience.
Long story short, if you have ever logged into an account long after it was created and been greeted with “Hello (insert your name). We’re so glad you’ve come back”, you know what I mean.
Yesterday I asked you to take stock of your digital footprint, including identifying the accounts that you use and maintain. I had a reason for asking you to do that. Today, I’m going to ask you to cancel or close the accounts that you don’t use. I want you to start reducing your digital footprint, especially if some of those accounts are also linked to your Facebook or other social media accounts. I want to also help you reduce the amount of email that you receive, especially if you have never used an unsubscribe button.
Closing or canceling an account doesn’t mean your personal information and buying history won’t still be retained on a server somewhere. In all likelihood, the information will be retained for a period of time after you make your request. After all, businesses must retain certain data to comply with local, state and federal laws. It also doesn’t mean if the server is breached, that the data won’t be stolen. As long as it’s retained, that possibility exists. What it does mean, though, is that someone won’t be able to use that account to make purchases. It also means you’ll have less work to do later this month. (Hint: I’ve already mapped out the next 29 day of tips.)
So, how many accounts do you need to close or cancel today?