> to scrub historical information from the platform.

You know they never actually delete user data, right? They don't delete your data if you actually delete your account, much less if you just delete a post. They just stop displaying it then.

This is something I wonder about. I'm certain they never delete anything, because in aggregate all that data is surely very valuable and will be for years to come. However, I hope that by marking it for deletion, it becomes more likely that it gets stored on increasingly distant/cold media, increasing the likelihood that over the years it gets overwritten or corrupted or some drives fail. If times get difficult, maybe they'll mark my data as low priority, and let it get overwritten to save some money. Can anyone shed some light on this - is this just wishful thinking? Is storage too cheap?

Another thing I wonder about: perhaps if some companies want your facebook data, they might pay a rate and see all current information on your facebook. By deleting your data, you've denied these lower-tier companies from accessing it. I suspect that with enough money, they could buy access to deleted posts too. But such companies are probably fewer in number.

> is this just wishful thinking? Is storage too cheap?

Yes

In essence it’s cheaper to store than delete.

They're very serious about data preservation.

https://code.facebook.com/posts/1433093613662262/-under-the-...

This is why I'm never giving them another piece of data for as long as I live. I haven't logged in for years and I blackhole Facebook emails to a folder I scan periodically just in case someone from years ago needs to get in touch with me.

Interestingly enough, these emails occasionally get past my inbox filter, and I have to update my regex. I imagine this kind of circumvention is someone's full time job, which just repels me further from the platform.

is_deleted: true

Okay we're done here, folks!