How to Delete a Duplicate LinkedIn Account (are you SURE you don't have one?)
Jul 09, 2024
A while ago, a network connection reached out to me to alert me that she found two LinkedIn accounts for my name. YIKES! I took this a sign to share my process with my fellow LinkedIn connections, in case any of you have a duplicate account.
Speaking of --- and before we go any further -- open LinkedIn in another window and search for your name NOW.
There are a few reasons WHY you should make sure you only have one LinkedIn account:
- Identity Theft. The experts suggest you review your credit report at least annually to make sure nobody is using your name to obtain credit. I recommend you do the same for LinkedIn. You certainly don't want to find out someone is posing as you with a fake LinkedIn account. We hear about this happening on Facebook all the time.
- Memories. Not the misty water colored ones. You may have created a LinkedIn account years ago with a former employer and forgotten about it or unable to access it since you had a different email that you can no longer remember. If you have a duplicate account, people might be trying to connect with an outdated, inactive account -- not realizing it's not the right account for you.
- Demo Account (I used to have one, which WAS the duplicate, and I've deleted it!). OK, this probably applies to 0.001% of the LinkedIn connection population who specializes in LinkedIn training, but you may have set up a demo account to show someone features and that account has your name on it.
So let's say you have a duplicate account and want to delete it. LinkedIn provides these instructions, with options if you remember the email and password on the second account, or if you just remember the email.
Assuming you're like me and you can't recall the email you used to create the account, you'll have to submit a ticket to LinkedIn to ask for their help. On the contact us page, click the "Get help from us" link. Then, follow the instructions to provide them details on the issue.
I've found LinkedIn is very helpful. I usually get a response within 1 business day.
After the process is complete, check for your name again. You should now only appear in the search results one time. TA-DA!
Let's connect: www.linkedin.com/in/brendameller - there is only ONE result for this URL! 😎
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