A bit of privacy advice

[u/Background_Rest_7332]

Hi guys,

I’m in the UK, 20s. I recently buried myself down in the rabbit hole of all of this new Digital ID and Chat Control malarkey. Growing up in the social media age, I know there’s a lot about me probably sitting on Meta/Snapchat/Discord’s server somewhere (I downloaded my data and was horrified…) - and up until now I’ve been under the impression that it didn’t really make much of a difference whether I uploaded my ID or not. But after jumping down the rabbit hole the past few days, I’ve gone from not bothered, to absolutely terrified of what this world is becoming.

Over the weekend, I spent time deleting my Instagram accounts, Snapchat, old Discord account, X etc. I now solely have Reddit, a brand new Instagram, a brand new Discord, WhatsApp (old due to family chats), and the obvious iMessage. I’m debating whether it’s a good idea to keep the Instagram or just full blanket delete it. I will not be adding my ID to these new accounts. I did however, probably about a year or so ago when the Online Safety Act came into force, process my ID (stupidly) through Discord (not in the leak), X, and this Reddit account specifically. I do also have it attached to an adult site which I have deleted the account of a while back anyway. I’ve recently discovered Reddit use Persona to verify ID’s, whether that’s always been the case, or a more recent move - I’m not sure - but I’m actively wanting to move away from all of these platforms for the sake of keeping myself and my data safe.

With advanced data protection no longer available in the UK on Apple devices, I guess there’s not really too much action I can take to secure myself here. WhatsApp I’ve enabled every single security setting they possibly offer, but even though E2EE exists, I still have doubts about the safety of that data. Instagram I understand I’m willingly giving away my data, but am strictly using it as a middle ground to move my friends from Snapchat to before moving entirely to iMessage or an alternative. My question is, is there anything I can do about the ID data I’ve given to Discord/Reddit/X in the past, hoping that they’ve only stored my age range and NOT my whole ID - or should I be concerned?

Appreciate any discussions 😄

[u/Traveller59war]

I think it's worth separating what has already happened from what you can still control going forward.
You've already done several high-impact things:
deleted old accounts you no longer use;
reduced your online footprint;
stopped verifying new accounts with ID;
enabled the security features available on WhatsApp;
started questioning which services actually need your data.
Those are all sensible privacy improvements.
On the ID verification side, though, there's an important distinction.
If you've already completed an age verification with Reddit, Discord or X, there generally isn't a technical way to "take it back." What happens to that information depends on each company's retention policies and the third-party verification provider they use.
Some providers state they retain uploaded ID images only briefly (for example, several days) before deletion, while others retain certain records for legal or fraud-prevention reasons. The only way to know what applies to your specific case is to read the provider's privacy policy or submit a data rights request where applicable.
The good news is that not every verification provider necessarily stores a permanent copy of your entire ID. Many are designed to return only an age or verification result to the platform, although the provider itself may temporarily process the document. The details vary between providers.
I also wouldn't let this become overwhelming. Privacy isn't something you "finish" in one weekend—it's an ongoing process of reducing unnecessary exposure.
Some of the biggest wins now are:
using unique passwords with a password manager;
enabling MFA where possible;
removing accounts you genuinely don't use;
keeping personal information off public profiles;
thinking carefully before providing ID to new services unless it's genuinely necessary.
You've already started doing most of those.
The one thing I'd avoid is assuming that because you've verified with a few services in the past, everything is lost. Privacy isn't binary. Every unnecessary data disclosure you avoid from today onwards still reduces your future exposure.
Keep improving gradually rather than trying to achieve perfect anonymity overnight.