Facebook used to be a fun place for people to connect with friends and family members, share memes, videos, photos, and so on. However, over the years Facebook has collected so much data on us that it can feel a bit unsettling. Maybe you’ve decided that it could be time to delete your Facebook account, and if you’ve decided to, then you might also want to consider exporting your Facebook data.
Thankfully, Facebook has introduced a tool that lets you download a copy of your Facebook data. This way you can at the very least see what kind of information Facebook has about you before deciding whether or not you want to delete your account. The entire process is quick and easy and here’s what you need to do to do it.
Exporting Your Facebook Data
- Log into your Facebook account
Click the down arrow icon located at the top right corner of the page- Go to Settings & Privacy > Settings
On the left column, click Privacy and go to Your Facebook Information- Next to Download Profile Information, click View
- Choose the data you want, the date, and the file format and click “Create File”
On the left column, click Privacy and go to Your Facebook Information
Next to Download Profile Information, click View
Choose the data you want, the date, and the file format and click “Create File”If the download doesn’t happen instantly, don’t worry because according to Facebook, it can take a few days to compile all your information. You can see the status of the file under the “Available Copies” section where it should appear as “Pending”.
When your data has been successfully compiled and is now ready for download, Facebook will send you a notification where you will be able to download it.
Once Facebook has notified you that your data is ready for download, go back to your “Download Your Information” page. Under the “Available Copies” tab, click Download. You will have to enter your Facebook password for verification, but once that’s done, your data should be downloaded to your computer.
Yes you can. Before requesting for a copy of your Facebook data, there will be a list of categories that your data falls under. Just check or uncheck the categories that you want included in your download, so you can pick and choose which are the categories of data that you feel are more relevant to your needs or are important.
No. Exporting your data basically creates a copy of your data that you can store as backup on your computer or an external drive. It has no impact whatsoever on your Facebook account or on pre-existing data.
No. According to Facebook, when you’ve deleted your account, all user-generated content will be erased. However, log data will be kept but your name won’t be attached to it, meaning that it shouldn’t be identifiable. Also, note that posts and content that involve you, like photos with you in it that have been posted by a friend or family member, will remain as long as that user continues to have an active Facebook account.