Does Facebook delete old messages/conversations that haven't been active in years?

Question

I joined Facebook in 2008 but don't recall if I used its messaging function at the time. I checked my old deactivated account and the oldest message is from 2009.

That's around 5 years ago now, so I'm wondering if Facebook deletes messages/inactive conversations older than 5 years? Being a teenager at the time I said some things I regret when messaging my friends over Facebook, so I'm certainly hoping this is the case.

Not that anyone would probably care enough to look, I'd just feel easier if there was no record of anything dumb I said.

Answer 1

Facebook does not delete old messages/conversations that haven't been active in years. (my oldest one: 2007-05-30). Note that at that time people often used to post on walls to discuss even private matters.

Answer 2

Even if they did not display them any more, you could not guarantee that they have been deleted. IMHO if there are things from the past that you don't want to be seen now saying, the best approach is to edit them yourself, to say something bland. (Even if you delete them yourself, there is still no guarantee that they're deleted from Facebook's servers.)

Answer 3

It seems they do delete old messages written to you by others, especially if those others are no longer on Facebook. My archived messages look like Swiss cheese, with only my side of conversations saved and even the names of my interlocutors and their messages deleted (redacted) somehow.