Deactivating your Facebook account is an easy process that can be reversed within 14 days. However, permanently deleting your Facebook account is more complicated. Once your account has been permanently deleted, it cannot be recovered. But don’t worry! With a few simple steps, you may be able to reactive your Facebook account even after permanent deactivation.
Can You Recover a Permanently Deleted Facebook Account?
When you permanently delete your Facebook account, Facebook claims it is gone forever. According to their policies, a permanently deleted account cannot be reactivated.
However, there have been reports of people successfully recovering permanently deleted accounts by contacting Facebook support. So it still may be possible to get your account back if you act quickly and follow the proper steps.
Why You May Want to Reactivate Your Account
There are several reasons why you might want to reactivate your Facebook account after deactivating it permanently:
- You regret deleting your account and want access to your old photos, messages, posts, etc.
- You use your Facebook account to login to other services and can no longer access those accounts.
- You have important contacts and connections only on Facebook that you want to regain access to.
- Your business or organization uses Facebook and needs your account reactivated.
- You use Facebook as an easy way to connect with friends and family and stay updated on their lives.
Downsides of Permanent Deactivation
Before attempting to recover your account, consider these potential downsides of permanent deactivation:
- It may not be possible to recover or reactivate the account if too much time has passed.
- You will lose all of your Facebook data, photos, conversations, connections, etc. forever if you cannot recover the account.
- The process to reactivate a “permanently” deleted account can be complicated and time consuming.
- Facebook may ban your account or IP address if they detect suspicious activity to recover a deleted account.
Steps to Reactivate a Permanently Deleted Facebook Account
If you are determined to recover your permanently deactivated Facebook account, here are the steps to take:
1. Login to Facebook Right Away
First and foremost, try logging into your Facebook account immediately. When you permanently delete an account, Facebook notes that it will be deactivated for 14 days before permanent deletion. So if you try to login within 14 days, your account and all data may still be intact.
2. Contact Facebook Support
If you cannot login after 14 days, your next step is to contact Facebook support. You can submit an account recovery request form through Facebook’s Help Center. Explain your situation in detail and request that they reactivate your permanently deleted account.
Make sure to provide as much identifying information as possible – your full name, email or phone number on the account, profile details, Pages or ads you managed, etc. Precise details will help Facebook support confirm your identity and improve your chances of account recovery.
3. Submit ID Verification
Facebook will likely ask you to verify your identity before considering reactivating your account. This usually involves submitting a copy of your government ID (such as a driver’s license or passport). You may also need to take a photo of yourself matching the ID and send that as well.
Providing proper ID verification is crucial if you want to prove the account belongs to you. Make sure the names and details on your ID exactly match what is (or was) on your Facebook account.
4. Check Other Associated Accounts
If you have accounts on other platforms (like Instagram) using the same email or phone number as your deactivated Facebook account, check if you can still access them. Your Facebook data may have synced with these accounts before deactivation.
You can also try resetting the password on your Facebook account via your connected Instagram, WhatsApp, or Messenger account (if you still have access to those). This may reactivate your Facebook access in some cases.
5. Use Your Email Address to Initiate Password Reset
Go to Facebook’s password reset page and enter the email address or phone number associated with your deactivated account. If the account was indeed permanently deleted, you should get an error saying the account does not exist.
However, some users have reported being able to initiate a password reset this way on an account Facebook claimed was permanently deleted. So it’s worth a try to see if you can use the password reset flow to regain access.
6. Check if Any Data is Still Visible
Conduct some searches to see if any of your Facebook data still shows up publicly, even though your account is deactivated. For example, search for your name, username, associated email/phone number, or profile details.
If any of your info, posts, or photos are still live, this is a sign your account was not permanently deleted fully. Contact Facebook support with this evidence to ask for reactivation.
7. Use Facial Recognition Login
If you had facial recognition login enabled on your Facebook account before deactivation, try logging in with it. Go to Facebook’s login page on the mobile app and tap the “Login with Face ID” option.
If it recognizes you and logs you into your account, your profile was likely not deleted fully. You may then be able to reactivate it fully via the app.
How to Prevent Accidental Permanent Deactivation
To avoid losing your Facebook account forever, be cautious when deactivating it. Follow these tips:
- Always choose the “temporary deactivate” option rather than permanent deletion.
- Reactivate your account within 14-30 days to be safe.
- Setup a backup contact email in case you lose access to your primary Facebook email.
- Enable two-factor authentication for added security.
- Make sure you can access other accounts linked to your Facebook.
- Download backups of your Facebook data periodically.
Other Ways to Recover Deleted Facebook Data
If you cannot reactivate your permanently deleted Facebook account, here are some ways you may be able to recover at least some of your old Facebook data:
Check Other Connected Apps and Sites
If you used your Facebook account to login to other apps and websites, some of your data may be stored there. For example check if you have any old posts or photos saved on apps like Timehop or TripIt which connected with Facebook.
Recover Data from Friends
Reach out to your Facebook friends who you closely interacted with and ask them to share any old posts, photos, messages etc. that involved you. They may have parts of your Facebook history that you can regain access to.
Check Your Email Archives
Facebook may have sent you notifications or data via email over the years. Search your email inbox thoroughly for any communication from Facebook to dig up archived links, conversations, or other account history.
Use Google Search History
If you browsed Facebook while logged into your Google account, some cached data, posts, and photos may be in your Google account web history. You can search through and recover this content.
Use Facebook Data Download
If you requested a download of your Facebook data before deactivating your account, you should have files containing your posts, photos, messages, and other data you can browse through to recover lost history.
Final Tips for Reactivating Deleted Facebook
Here are a few final tips to keep in mind when trying to recover your deactivated Facebook account:
- Act as quickly as possible – your chances decrease significantly after 14-30 days.
- Be persistent when contacting Facebook support – follow up if you don’t hear back.
- Provide as much verifiable detail about yourself and your account as you can.
- Check back regularly as it may take time for Facebook to fully process your deletion.
- Use multifactor forms of identity verification to prove you own the account.
- If you still have your deactivated account logged in on any device or browser, don’t logout!
Conclusion
While Facebook claims permanently deactivated accounts cannot be restored, it still may be possible if you act quickly and diligently. Contact Facebook support right away, be ready to verify your identity, and provide as many account details as possible. You also need some luck on your side as account recovery is never guaranteed. With persistence, you just might get access back to your old Facebook account and data.