A practical privacy guide
Protect your privacy online, one account at a time.
A practical online privacy checklist: review old accounts, reduce unnecessary sharing, understand VPN limits, and prepare personal data deletion requests.
Start with the privacy problem you want to solve
Online privacy can mean several different things: controlling public information, reducing records held by companies, limiting browser tracking, or protecting a network connection. Choose one concrete concern before installing another tool. That makes it easier to judge whether your action helped.
For example, if an unused shopping account still contains your address, changing your network connection does not remove that record. If a public profile appears in search, closing a different private account does not resolve the listing. Use the checklist below to match actions to the information involved.
Review the companies you already use
Create a private list of services you recognise from saved logins, purchase records, and account emails. Note which you still need and which you can investigate for closure. Our old account discovery guide includes mailbox searches to help you start.
An email is a clue, not confirmation that a live account exists. Visit the service through a trusted address and check its account settings. Avoid entering your mailbox password into an unfamiliar account-finder form. Spectre's data handling page explains its processing before you connect a supported mailbox.
Reduce unnecessary sharing in accounts you keep
Review optional profile fields, public visibility, connected applications, and contact permissions. Ask whether each item is still useful. When changing a sign-in connection, confirm you have another way into the account first.
Keep account security in the plan: use distinct passwords, available multifactor authentication, and current software. These steps protect access to information; they do not prove that the service has deleted existing records. The FTC's account security guidance explains practical account protections.
Close unused accounts carefully
Before deleting an account, save needed files, check paid subscriptions, and review purchases or recovery dependencies. Use the service's own closure process and keep its confirmation. Work through our before-deletion checklist if the account is important or connected to other services.
Unsubscribing from emails is a separate action. It may be useful, but it should not be treated as evidence that the account or personal data is gone.
Request deletion of personal data where appropriate
If the GDPR applies, Article 17 provides a right to erasure in specified circumstances and includes exceptions. Explain which account or records concern you and what you want removed. Start with the deletion request template and right to erasure guide.
Keep a simple record of the company, request date, requested scope, and reply. The EDPB's individual rights guide explains the broader framework. A request is not a guarantee that every record must be erased.
Understand where a VPN fits
A VPN addresses aspects of network privacy. It does not close accounts or delete information held by companies. Before relying on it for a specific concern, read our VPN and data privacy comparison.
Choose one task for today
Pick an unused service you recognise. Verify the account, save what matters, and decide whether to close it or request erasure. Record the outcome before moving to another service. Spectre can help discover likely old accounts and prepare reviewed requests; manual review remains part of the workflow.