Being on social media means exposing your life and thoughts to many people through your content.
You may decide to delete this content for different reasons, but what if you regret your decision and want the posts back?
You may want to access other users’ deleted content.
This post will explore if you can view deleted posts on Tumblr.
How To View Deactivated Tumblr Posts (5 Ways)
Tumblr used to be the perfect platform for sharing different forms of media until they found adult content posted by some accounts.
They decided to do the infamous purge and delete any post that depicted sensitive content.
However, unlike other social media, posts deleted on Tumblr are retrievable.
That’s because Tumblr doesn’t delete the posts from their servers.
Here’s how you can see deactivated posts on Tumblr.
1. Use The Cached Version Of The App
Many users have reported that they’ve managed to get back some deleted posts, although it’s not a guaranteed option.
First, you should know the URL of the deleted post.
Then, type it in your web browser’s address bar and add “cache:” before the URL.
If there’s a backup version of the post, you may be able to see it.
Any attempt to get back deleted posts requires previous backups.
You can use the manual backup method to help you retrieve your posts any time you want.
Here’s how you can do it:
Log into your Tumblr account and open the post you want to back up.
Click on the gear icon next to the post and select “Open.”
Select the <html> icon to see the post’s HTML code.
To get a backup, you need to select and copy this code, paste it into a text file, and use it whenever you need to.
2. Use Web Archive
The most commonly used tool to get back any web content is the Internet Archive.
This is a digital library that gives everyone free access to massive collections of archived digital materials.
You can access anything from website content to software applications, media files, games, and even books.
In addition to downloading files, the Internet Archive allows public users to upload their digital material.
You can use this service to archive and retrieve any digital file that you want.
The Wayback Machine is the primary tool that collects data from web crawlers and gives you access to the files you want.
To retrieve your Tumblr post, simply type in the post’s URL and hit “Browse History.”
3. Queue+
Queue+ is another Tumblr-related tool that allows you to restore deleted posts.
It’s a useful post-scheduling platform that helps users queue their posts and provides analytics services.
Users can queue and post up to 300 posts at a time within customizable intervals.
As a bonus, you can retrieve your deleted posts.
However, like other methods of retrieving deleted Tumblr posts, they have to be stored somewhere else.
You can only restore the posts that you’ve already queued
4. Feedly
Another useful tool that can help you retrieve a Tumblr post is Feedly.
Feedly is an RSS reader that allows you to store copies of webpages and some metadata in an RSS feed.
And it doesn’t delete the data even when it has disappeared from a website or platform.
Since Tumblr supports RSS, you can add a “/rss” after the post’s URL and view it after removal.
The only catch is that you can’t access everything you need.
That’s because it’s Feedly that decides what to save or not.
If you want a post from before Feedly started, you can’t access it.
Plus, if the post or image has been taken off Tumblr’s servers, there’s no way to get them back.
5. Tumblr Backup
Mac users can back up their Tumblr posts using the tool provided by Tumblr itself.
It allows you to store your blog content on different devices, copy them to a CD or just an HTML archive.
The only caveat is that this tool isn’t available to Windows users.
Plus, it doesn’t back up private tumblelogs, feed-imported posts, submissions, and notes.
You provide your Tumblr username and select the files that you want to back up.
It creates an HTML file that stores all the files you provide and gives you an HTML code.
Other Ways To Back Up Tumblr Posts
Instead of using third-party tools, you can use other solutions to create backup files for your blog.
One of them is exporting your blog to your desktop.
However, you need to export your blog every time you post new content on it or when users leave new comments.
In addition, you can’t back up everything, such as your blog’s theme settings.
That’s what Tumblr’s backup tool does by exporting your blog to your desktop.
One of its main benefits is that you can include your Tumblr’s theme code in a separate file, too.
Plus, you don’t need to back up duplicate files as it only downloads the files that you don’t have in the backup folder.
Another workaround is to repost your blog entries automatically to another blog.
For example, you can create a Blogger blog, make it private so that it doesn’t compete with your Tumblr’s blog, and automatically back up all the Tumblr posts onto that blog.
Why Does Tumblr Deactivate Accounts?
Tumblr deactivates accounts for different reasons as it has strict rules controlling the content posted on its platform.
If you post violent or sensitive content, or if Tumblr thinks you’re a bot, it may choose to deactivate or suspend your account.
In addition, accounts that have been inactive for more than a year get deactivated and will be available for other users to take over.
As mentioned earlier, publishing adult content, hate speech, or violence can get your account suspended.
Tumblr uses robots and human employees to identify these posts and separate them from similar but allowed content.
For example, if you post photos of topless women for p*rnographic purposes, your post will be deleted.
However, if you post pictures about mastectomy, it’s quite permissible.
Here are some of the main reasons Tumblr may decide to take down your account or delete your post.
1. Posting Copyrighted Content
Copyrighted content is a no-no in every social media platform conforming to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.
Tumblr is also required to take down any content that it suspects doesn’t belong to the user and is an act of copyright infringement.
Even if you don’t make money from the copyrighted content, posting copyrighted content for free is an actual violation of DMCA.
2. Spammy Content
If you give Tumblr the impression that you’re a fake account or a bug, it may take down your account.
Publishing too many posts about the same content in a row, using too many buzzwords, or posting a lot of links are different examples of spammy content.
Tumblr allows its users to use other apps in their accounts to create content or other functions.
However, not every app is trustworthy as they can use access to your account for creating and reposting spam.
If you suspect any of these apps is creating spammy content, revoke its access by going to Tumblr’s Settings and the “Apps” option.
How To Restore Your Deactivated Tumblr Account
Despite the strict rules restricting certain content, Tumblr may occasionally flag your content as inappropriate by mistake.
Or, as mentioned earlier, it will label your account as “dormant” if you haven’t posted anything for more than a year.
In such cases, it’s possible to get back your account by writing to Tumblr’s support team and asking them to restore your account.
However, Tumblr can’t restore your deleted posts or accounts.
If you delete your account, there’s no going back.
Although deleting your Tumblr account means it’s gone forever, you may be able to restore it if you act quickly.
When a Tumblr account gets deleted, its URL remains available for other users to take it.
If you take the initiative immediately after losing the account, you can get the URL back and start your blog all over again.
Sign up for a new account and edit your dashboard settings to claim the account.
Here’s how to do it:
Head to the Tumblr website and hit the “Sign Up” button.
Enter your username, password, and email address.
The email address can be the same one you had for the previous account if you want it to be connected to your account for business purposes.
After entering all the information, click on “Start.”
Now, you should enter your age and agree with the terms of service by following all the on-screen prompts and clicking “Next.”
After entering the CAPTCHA code, you can go to the dashboard page.
Now, you should receive an email from the Tumblr team containing a link to confirm and activate your new account.
Return to your new dashboard and click on the gear icon to see the Untitled link that lets you access your blog settings.
After clicking on the link, enter your previous account’s URL in the field and hit “Save” to make changes and restore your URL.
Now, you have a new account with your old URL and can start publishing posts immediately.
What Will You Lose If You Deactivate Your Tumblr Account?
You may decide to go cold turkey and deactivate your Tumblr account for different reasons, like cutting back on screen time or just getting away from all things virtual.
As we said, deleting your account means you can’t restore it, and there’s nothing you can do about it.
Let’s explore what you’ll lose if you delete your account:
1. You’ll Lose Your Content
Deleting a Tumblr blog will remove everything you’ve posted so far permanently.
The only way you may have a chance to access some of your content is that other users reblogged it, and you can see it on their blogs.
However, accessing all of your reblogged content may not be possible, and it’s pure luck if you do.
2. Primary And Secondary Blogs
If you delete your primary blog, you’ll lose everything attached to it, including the secondary blogs, the users you follow, and your whole Tumblr account.
However, deactivating your secondary blog doesn’t affect posts from other blogs or your primary blog.
You’ll lose all the content posted on that blog, and you’ll relinquish control over the blog’s URL.
3. Group Blogs
If you have a group blog, you can’t delete it unless you delete all the members or ask them to leave the group.
If you deactivate your account without removing all members, you’ll go out of the group, and another member becomes the owner.
You can delete all the members at once, provided that you have administrative rights to the group.
4. Purchased Materials And Credits
If you have any content that you’ve already purchased will disappear after deactivating your account.
That means you’ll lose any premium themes that you’ve paid for.
You may want to move the themes to another account to save them.
It’s also a good idea to contact Tumblr’s support team and ask how to save them before deleting your account.
Note that deleting your account will make all your tumble credits disappear, too.
How To Deactivate Your Tumblr Account
So, you’ve decided to finally take the plunge and delete your Tumblr account, although you know that you can’t get it back.
Fortunately, it has a straightforward process, and you can complete it within a few minutes.
That said, you should note that you can’t delete your account on your mobile app.
The only way to complete the removal process is to use the web app.
To delete your entire account, log into your account on Tumblr.com and click on your profile in the upper right corner of the screen.
When the dropdown menu opens, scroll down and locate “Settings.”
After clicking on settings, you’ll have a window where you should scroll down to the bottom and click on “Delete account.”
Now, you need to enter your Tumblr account credentials to complete the process.
By selecting “Delete everything,” you’ll agree to permanently deactivate your account.
Deleting A Secondary Tumblr Blog
As mentioned earlier, if you have other secondary blogs on Tumblr, you can deactivate them without affecting the primary account.
So, you won’t lose your account by deleting your secondary blog.
Note: Before deleting your secondary blog, you may want to save your blog content.
You can export the blog’s content by going to your profile > Edit appearance > Export.
To delete your secondary blog, enter your profile and select the secondary blog you want to deactivate in the dropdown menu under “Tumblrs.”
If you’ve accessed your profile on that blog, you can find a list of options in the dropdown menu under its name.
If you’re on your primary account, you’ll get redirected to that blog to see its dashboard.
Go to Profile > Edit appearance to see that dropdown menu.
Scroll down, locate “Delete [blog]” and select it.
Note: If you want to delete your secondary blog, make sure you see the name of that blog next to the “Delete” option.
Otherwise, it shows that you’re on your primary account, and you may delete it unwantedly for good.
Enter your email address and password to confirm the process, and click on “Delete [blog]” to remove that secondary blog permanently.
