[nuclear_eclipse]

Assuming that the data is just your phone number and name/email, is it not possible that this is just from friends who have allowed Facebook and/or Messenger to share contact info? Your original account data almost certainly would have been deleted/purged due to various regulatory requirements, but that doesn't necessarily stop your contact info from being shared again and making its way back into the system.

[sorokod]

But then again, Occam's razor would suggest that FB never deleted the data in the first place.

By the way, data is not "making its way back" like some sort of salmon trying to get back to the source, it is forcefully harvested by FB.

[nuclear_eclipse]

Presenting a screen/dialog to the user at first login asking for permission to access contact data does not sound like "forcefully harvested". Users rarely understand the consequences of their decision, which is why I would love to see iOS and Android eliminate the option of wholesale contact access, but use of Facebook apps is not predicated upon receiving your contact data.

[atat7024]

It does if your average user is so uneducated they freeze up and whack the next button until the screen with all those words on it goes away.

[nuclear_eclipse]

If someone signs a bad contract because they refuse to read and understand it, and just signs it anyways, they're still generally bound by the terms of the contract. iOS and Android both have pretty clear descriptions in their permissions dialog of what the app is asking for.

[sir_brickalot]

It's not a bad contract for that someone though. It's a bad contract for that someones friends.

[sorokod]

Maybe that adjective is not quite right, "rapaciously" perhaps?