At Selabyte, we believe you should always retain full ownership of your data, including the right to delete your account and erase your presence from our systems.
Method 1: In-App Account Deletion (Recommended)
The standard and most direct method to delete your account is through the Nowa Chat mobile application:
- Open Nowa Chat on your mobile device.
- Navigate to Settings > Legal & Safety > Delete Account.
- Exit Feedback: Select your reason for deleting your account to help us understand your experience. If you are experiencing harassment or unwanted messages, you will be offered quick access to block and report tools as an alternative.
- Points & Subscriptions Notice: Review the forfeiture warning for any remaining points balance. If you have an active Google Play or Apple App Store subscription, please cancel it directly in your device’s store settings.
- Security Verification: Tap Send Verification Code to receive a 6-digit one-time security code at your registered email address. Enter the code in the verification field.
- Confirmation Gate: Type DELETE in capital letters to confirm your intent.
- Tap Schedule Account Deletion.
Upon scheduling:
- Your active session on this device is wiped immediately (local encrypted messages, ratchet states, and cached media are removed).
- Your account transitions to a 90-Day Grace Period (
PENDING_DELETION). - Your profile is immediately hidden from user discovery, search, nearby lists, and message relay directories.
The 90-Day Grace Period & Account Restoration
To protect accounts against accidental deletion, coercion, or unauthorized access, accounts enter a dormant 90-day grace period before permanent erasure:
- Dormant Cold Storage: Your account credentials remain reserved so that malicious parties cannot register your username or email during the waiting window.
- Message and Discovery Block: Peer clients cannot start new chats with your account or retrieve encryption prekeys. Any undelivered messages queued in ephemeral server memory are discarded immediately upon entering the grace period.
- Account Restoration (Cancel Deletion): If you change your mind at any point within the 90 days, simply open Nowa Chat, log in with your email and password (or connected OAuth provider), and tap Restore My Account. Your account will return to active status immediately.
- Scheduled Purge: If no login occurs within 90 days, our automated sweeper permanently purges and anonymizes your account.
Method 2: Immediate Erasure Request / Email Fallback (GDPR Article 17 / CCPA)
If you no longer have access to your mobile device, or if you wish to exercise your statutory right to immediate permanent erasure without waiting for the 90-day grace period:
- Send an email to [email protected] with the subject line:
GDPR Immediate Erasure Request - [Your Registered Email Address] - Send this email from the exact email address registered to your Nowa Chat account.
- Include a clear statement requesting immediate permanent erasure of your account.
- An authorized administrator will verify your ownership and trigger immediate permanent erasure without the 90-day waiting window.
Account Deletion & Retention Schedule
| Data Category | During 90-Day Grace Period | At Permanent Purge (Day 90+ or Immediate Request) |
|---|---|---|
| Local Device Data | Wiped immediately on deletion confirmation | Irrecoverable (keys and local database wiped) |
| Profile Discovery & Search | Removed immediately (hidden from all queries) | Permanently inaccessible |
| Public Encryption Keys | Dormant; relay prekey bundles return 404 Not Found | Permanently deleted from database |
| Stored Photos & Avatars | Preserved in dormant storage for restoration | Permanently purged from cloud object storage |
| User Identifiers (Handle & Email) | Reserved to prevent impersonation | Overwritten with random collision-free values in the reserved deleted_ namespace (deleted_<hex>), freeing your original handle and email |
| Ephemeral Relayed Messages | Ciphertext queues purged upon deletion confirmation | No messages exist (server does not store message history) |
| Point Ledger & Audit Records | Retained with account state marked pending | Anonymized (retained only for financial/legal accounting without personal identifiers) |
Document Changelog
| Version | Effective Date | Description of Changes |
|---|---|---|
1.2.0 | 2026-10-18 | Refactored deletion process to include mandatory email verification code, exit feedback, 90-day grace period with self-service restoration, collision-free anonymization, and GDPR immediate erasure fallback. |
1.1.0 | 2026-10-09 | Updated for “Nowa Chat: Meet New People” release and official store compliance. |
1.0.0 | 2026-10-01 | Initial account deletion policy conforming to app store guidelines and backend retention schedule. |