How do I delete my account or my data?

First the distinction: deletion only applies to a registered account.

If you joined without an account, there is no account to delete. You remove your uploaded photos one by one instead – see How do I delete my own photo?

Where deletion sits

Open Account Settings from the avatar at the top right and switch to the Security tab. At the very bottom, expand Advanced Settings; inside, under Account Management, sits Delete Account.

This is final

Deletion cannot be undone. The dialog states: “This action cannot be undone. All your data will be permanently deleted.” There is no recycle bin and no way back.

Phone

Computer

The path starts in your profile – account deletion is deliberately not hidden in the gallery. ① your profile picture, ② your name with the pencil that changes the nickname, below it points, published photos and the last visit, ③ Account Settings, ④ your Task Progress.

The special case – events you are the sole owner of

Before anything is deleted, Photogala checks whether you are the only owner of an event.

• If you are not, the green message No events to handle appears and you can carry on right away.
• If you are, you get Events That Need Your Attention with the list of those events. For each of them you have to decide: Transfer to another registered person, or Delete Event.

Only once every event is handled does Proceed to Delete Account become clickable. Until then it says “Please transfer or mark all events for deletion before proceeding”.

Phone

Computer

If you are the sole owner of an event, your first stop is here — the danger zone of the event settings.

The confirmation

1. In the Delete Account Confirmation dialog, type your email address exactly as it belongs to your account.

2. Only then does Confirm Delete become active.

What happens to your photos

Important, so it does not catch you out: photos you uploaded to someone else’s gallery do not automatically disappear when you delete your account. They stay in that gallery, but they are no longer linked to you.

If you really want them gone, do it beforehand:

• Delete your own photos one by one while you are still signed in – see How do I delete my own photo?
• Remove your selfie and face data if you used the people search – see Face recognition & privacy.
• Anything still open after that you settle with the respective organiser. You will find their contact details in the event’s legal pages – see Your privacy.

Example

You want to get rid of your account, but two years ago you created a company party yourself. In the Security tab you open Delete Account – instead of the green message you get Events That Need Your Attention with that one gallery. You choose Transfer and enter your colleague’s email; only then does Proceed to Delete Account become clickable. In the confirmation dialog you type your email exactly as it belongs to the account and confirm with Confirm Delete. Your 34 photos in your cousin’s wedding gallery stay there, though – just without your name. If you wanted those gone too, you would have had to delete them one by one beforehand.

Related pages

• Guest or account
• Your privacy
• What happens to my data?
• How do I delete my own photo?