TikTok's new privacy policy is raising alarms: Here's how to delete your account right now

If you’re a TikTok user — or have spent any time on social media over the last few days — you’ve likely seen numerous people talking about uninstalling TikTok and deleting their account. According to CNBC, the number of US TikTok users who have deleted the app has increased by 150% over the last few days.

That’s a lot of people jumping ship, and if you’re reading this, chances are you’re interested in getting off the TikTok bandwagon, too.

But why are so many TikTok users calling it quits? And if you’re ready to leave, what should you do? Let’s get into it.

Why are people deleting and uninstalling TikTok?

On January 22, TikTok owner ByteDance announced it had created a new American-owned joint venture to allow TikTok to continue operating in the US without the risk of further bans.

The deal, which has been vocally supported by President Trump, is now primarily owned by three notable investors:

• Oracle — Database company that’s now a “security partner” for TikTok’s US operations. Larry Ellison, Oracle’s co-founder and CTO, is a known financial supporter and ally of Trump.
• MGX — AI investment firm from the United Arab Emirates and a backer of xAI and OpenAI.
• Silver Lake — Private equity firm that has previously invested in companies like Tesla, Waymo, Dell, and others.

Shortly after this change in ownership, TikTok rolled out an updated terms of service and privacy policy that can only be described as concerning. Based on your posts and comments on the app, TikTok may now collect information about your “religious beliefs, mental or physical health diagnosis,” and “sexual life or sexual orientation.” Even more alarming for some people is the collection of “citizenship or immigration status.”

This is in addition to reports of censorship for videos critical of the Trump administration and mentions of topics such as the Epstein files. TikTok has pushed back on these censorship claims, but it’s gotten enough attention that California Governor Gavin Newsom has launched an investigation.

How to delete your TikTok account

These changes obviously don’t sit well with many TikTok users, and, understandably, it’s pushing some of them to delete their accounts. If that’s something you’re also interested in doing, here’s what you need to do.

1. Open the TikTok app on your phone.
2. Tap the Profile icon in the bottom-right corner.
3. Tap the menu button in the top-right (the icon with three lines).
4. Tap Settings.
5. Tap Account.
6. Tap Deactivate or delete account.

You’ll have two options here: Deactivate account and Delete account permanently.

Deactivating your account will hide your TikTok account from other users, but all of your videos and other content are still saved on TikTok’s servers — and you can recover it at any time. Deleting your account is a permanent solution. You can reactivate your account within 30 days of initiating your account deletion, but after that, your account and everything it contains is gone for good.

If you want to ensure you cut ties with TikTok as thoroughly as possible, you’ll want to delete your account rather than deactivate it.

Once your account deletion is complete, the last step is to uninstall TikTok from your phone. On most Android phones, go to the app drawer, press and hold the TikTok app, then drag it up to the Uninstall box at the top of the screen. On other phones, you may see an Uninstall button appear after pressing and holding the app icon.

Whether or not deleting your TikTok account is the right move is ultimately up to you, but if you want to, now you know how.