With over 2 billion monthly active users, Facebook has become the most popular social media platform for connecting with friends, family, brands, and businesses. As part of its services, Facebook allows users to store payment information to purchase products, donate to causes, and pay for ads directly through the platform.
While storing your payment details on Facebook can make the checkout and transaction process quicker and more convenient, many users want to learn how to remove their card information from Facebook for security and privacy reasons.
Why Would You Want to Remove Payment Details from Facebook?
There are a few key reasons why you may want to delete payment information from your Facebook account:
- Prevent unauthorized purchases or donations made through your account
- Stop Facebook from using your card details for ad targeting purposes
- Avoid hassle if your account is ever hacked or compromised
- Keep payment info private and secure
Let’s explore these motivations further:
Prevent Unauthorized Purchases
By saving a credit/debit card or PayPal account on Facebook, you are giving the platform authorization to make charges on your behalf for any transactions made through the app. If your Facebook account was ever hacked or compromised, hackers could potentially gain access to your stored payment methods and make fraudulent purchases or drain your accounts.
Removing your card and bank account details from Facebook removes this risk entirely and ensures charges cannot be made without your consent.
Stop Facebook from Using Your Data
Facebook collects an enormous amount of data about its users for ad targeting and personalization. By storing your payment information, Facebook can associate these details with your profile and browsing habits to serve up related ads and recommendations.
If you are uncomfortable with Facebook having access to your financial data for ad purposes, deleting your payment methods prevents this type of tracking and data collection.
Avoid Hassle if Account is Hacked
Hacking is always a threat with any online account. While Facebook has strong security measures in place, data breaches can and do occur.
If your Facebook account was ever compromised, hackers could make unauthorized transactions through your account using stored payment details. Having to cancel cards, dispute fraudulent charges, and prove identity theft can be a huge hassle.
Removing your payment data from Facebook altogether eliminates this potential security issue.
Keep Payment Information Private
Some users simply prefer not to store sensitive payment credentials within their Facebook accounts. Even if you fully trust Facebook’s security, you may want to limit payment data to only necessary financial apps and websites.
Deleting card information from Facebook allows you to keep this data private and compartmentalized from social media activity.
How to Remove Payment Methods from Facebook
If you want to delete a credit/debit card or bank account from Facebook, here are step-by-step instructions:
Step 1: Access Payment Settings
- Log into your Facebook account on desktop or mobile
- Click on the down arrow in the top right to access the menu
- Select “Settings & Privacy”
- Go to the “Settings” menu
- Click on “Payments”
Step 2: Select “Payment Methods”
This will show you a list of any cards, payment services, and bank accounts currently stored on your Facebook account.
Step 3: Remove Payment Method
To delete a payment method:
- Click the 3 dots next to the card or bank account you want to remove
- Select “Remove”
- Confirm that you want to remove this payment method
Repeat this process for each individual payment method you want to delete.
Step 4: Remove From Other Facebook Services
When you store a payment method on Facebook, it may be made available across Facebook-owned services like Instagram and Messenger for convenience.
To ensure the card or bank details are removed from all Facebook services:
- Go back to “Payment Settings”
- Select “Remove From Other Facebook Products”
- Check the payment method you want removed from additional Facebook services
- Click “Remove”
Removing Bank Accounts, Debit Cards, Credit Cards, and PayPal
The above instructions allow you to remove any type of payment method associated with your Facebook account, including:
- Bank accounts
- Debit cards
- Credit cards
- Digital wallets like PayPal
The process is the same regardless of payment method – just select the specific card or bank account you want deleted.
Bank Accounts
To remove a bank account, locate it in your Payment Settings, click the 3 dots, and confirm removal. This eliminates the account as a payment option from Facebook.
Debit Cards
Debit cards can be removed directly from Payment Settings by clicking the 3 dots and verifying you want to delete the card.
Credit Cards
Credit cards are deleted in the same way. Just select the card you want removed and confirm to eliminate it.
PayPal
If you have a PayPal account connected to your Facebook, you can remove it as a payment method through the Payment Settings menu.
Does Removing Payment Methods Cancel Subscriptions?
If you are subscribed to any services through your Facebook account, removing your payment method does not automatically cancel those subscriptions.
When you delete a card or bank account, it simply removes the ability for Facebook to charge that source for subscription fees. However, you will still remain subscribed.
To fully cancel a Facebook subscription, you will need to:
- Go to your Payment Settings
- Locate the specific subscription
- Click “Cancel Subscription”
- Confirm the cancellation
This will stop recurring payments being made for that subscription, regardless of payment method on file.
How to Delete Facebook Payment History
Along with removing payment details, you may also want to delete your Facebook payment history which contains records of all transactions made through the platform.
To clear your Facebook payment history:
- Go to Payment Settings
- Click on “Payment History”
- Click the 3 dots next to a transaction
- Select “Hide from Payment History”
- Confirm that you want to remove this transaction
Repeat this process for each individual payment history record you want to delete. While this clears the transactions from view, Facebook may still retain records internally.
Maintaining Security of Facebook Account
While removing payment details from your Facebook account improves security and privacy, there are additional steps you can take to keep your account safe:
- Enable two-factor authentication
- Frequently change your password
- Be wary of third-party apps requesting access
- Avoid clicking suspicious links
- Monitor account activity and notifications
Practicing general online security hygiene ensures you maximize protection regardless of whether payment information is stored on Facebook.
Conclusion
Removing stored payment cards and bank accounts from your Facebook account helps improve security, privacy, and peace of mind. The above guide outlines the straightforward process to delete this sensitive information through the Facebook Payment Settings menu.
While perhaps convenient, many users prefer to avoid associating financial data with social media activity. Following these steps properly dissociates your payment details from Facebook without affecting functionality or subscriptions.
Along with removing payment methods, also consider deleting your Facebook payment history and enabling two-factor authentication to fully lock down account security.
With payment data removed, you can continue enjoying Facebook services while keeping sensitive card information away from the platform and reducing risks associated with account compromise. Just remember to update any recurring subscriptions by entering new payment sources to avoid disruption.