Past August, we ran a story about the dangers of abandoned email and chat accounts. Since then, we've been getting a steady trickle of requests from readers for advice on how to get a provider to delete an unused profile or address completely.

Reading the fine print of legalese is never fun, and therefore it's no surprise that many users apparently read the privacy policy of a "free" web site for the first time when they want to cancel the account. More often than not, they then find out that ... there is simply no way to back out. Or rather, that the legalese gives the provider ample rights to delete an account at any time, without warning, but that there is no way for an user to request such an action.

Today's question on the topic came from reader Mike, who tries to have his old and unused ICQ.com account properly closed and deleted. Not so easy, it turns out: The "support forum" on ICQ is full of users who post "please close my account" requests, but don't seem to be getting an answer or action. If you know an approach that works for ICQ, please comment below, or let us know via our contact page.