How download your Facebook data

March 26, 2018
Kevin Lam

You’ve probably heard about the trouble Facebook is in these days regarding the Cambridge Analytica user data “breach of trust”, and now there’s a story about Facebook (for Android users using Messenger) recording your call logs: https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/social-media/facebook-confirms-it-records-call-history-stoking-privacy-furor-n860006

If you want to download your Facebook data, here are the steps you can follow:

  1. Log into your Facebook account
  2. Click Settings from the dropdown on the top right
  3. Under General Account Settings there’s a link labeled “Download a copy of your Facebook data“, click this link
  4. Click Download Archive and this will start the process of Facebook to collect your data, Facebook will alert you when it’s ready for download
  5. When your download is ready, go back to the same location and click Download Archive
  6. You’ll have to re-enter your Facebook password to download it

Word of caution, this archive file contains copies of all your data including private messages, so be sure to keep your archive on an encrypted drive or someplace safe.

–Kevin