Only the Fast Track account deletion window remains open
Blind: "Not a money grab...we lack processing resources"
# HR staff member Kim recently logged into the Blind website to request the deletion of multiple former employees' accounts and was taken aback. The free request page for deleting former employees' accounts had been blocked, citing a high volume of current requests. Paid requests were possible, but the price was 5,990 dollars (about 8.7 million won).
The anonymous workplace community application Blind is facing criticism that it is steering companies toward the paid option for its former-employee account deletion service.
On the 6th, Blind closed the free account deletion request window on its website, saying, "We are focusing on processing already submitted requests, so this service will be temporarily suspended." It initially stated only that the resumption date "will be adjusted as necessary" without specifying a schedule, then later updated the notice to say it is expected to reopen at 11:00 a.m. on the 23rd.
The paid Fast Track channel, however, has been left open. Under this structure, Blind charges a fee (an express processing charge) in return for shortening the usual deletion processing time of 60 to more than 150 business days down to within 15 days. The company says it created this for convenience as the number of users, and thus account deletion requests, increased. Work begins immediately upon receipt, and refunds are not available.
Blind basically requires verification of a company email address to sign up. From a company's perspective, there is no way to block former employees who continue to be active without voluntarily going through re-verification. Even if they post malicious or company-slandering content, it is difficult to identify whether they are current employees, so the company cannot take action even if the internal atmosphere is negatively affected.
The free request page for deleting former employees' accounts on the Blind website is inaccessible. A notice reads, "We are focusing on processing previously submitted requests, so this service has been temporarily suspended; its resumption will be adjusted as necessary." Screenshot of the Blind website.
Kim stressed, "We have no other choice but to send the list of former employees to Blind and request deletions," adding, "This problem arose because the re-verification process does not properly filter accounts, yet instead of improving that mechanism, they are pushing companies toward paid applications."
The Fast Track service was controversial when it was first introduced in 2018. Critics argued that the service, which originally started out free, was now being offered at an excessively high price. Blind stated at the time that it was considering withdrawing the service, but it has kept it in place to this day.
Blind says that the workload involved in handling former-employee accounts has become too heavy, leaving it with no other choice, and that it is internally grappling with the issue. The company explained that it can process roughly 1,000 cases at a time; when incoming requests exceed that number, additional resources such as personnel are needed, which inevitably leads to higher costs. The same standards are applied in overseas markets where Blind is offered, including North America and India, it added.
Blind explained, "The reason we created the Fast Track service was to meet the needs of companies facing issues such as voluntary retirement programs, and we intentionally set a hurdle so that it would only be used when truly necessary in specific situations," adding, "As a platform engaged in both business-to-consumer (B2C) and business-to-business (B2B) transactions, we are not trying to give special treatment only to companies that pay." The company went on to say, "The free application window opens and closes depending on whether we have the resources to process requests, and how long it remains closed varies from time to time."
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