They will probably put it in some archive where they delete it after 10 years. Or they keep it somewhere on a drive where it could be accessed but will never be, since no one has a reason to use the data.
Hard to say where the data could end up. If someone pulled the drive and kept it, it could sit around for years doing nothing. It if it immediately got to a black hat it could be sold off on the darknet. Probably not for millions though.
They may not be looking hard today, but I doubt they're just going to delete the information. The information will stick around into the future, and we don't know who will be interested in the data in the future.
Does anyone have any insight on what actually happens to this data? Is it really deleted or just stored in a warehouse somewhere inaccessible to me but accessible to some snooping government or hacker?
It's a great question, with all the data that people willingly share online now, there's little thought to what happens to it if it's not cared for/looked after. What is the companies legal obligation once they no longer have a need for the data? Do they destroy it? Who checks on this? Or do they simply drop it into an xls spreadsheet and auction it off to a spam house...
Wouldn't that depend on what they use this data for, what it is, and whether they keep it regardless of taking the file down if requested ? ( GDPR, etc. )
Well that's easy: They guarantee they will store and use all the data forever, and they guarantee they will lie to both you and the authorities about what they have used it for and whether it has been deleted.
The data is stored in people's brains for a lifetime. The data is worthless afterwards, so this is indefinite storage for all intents and purposes.
Law enforcement can retrieve the information by asking for it.
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