How to Download and See Data Facebook Stores About You

This How.com.vn teaches you how to download an archive that contains all of your Facebook data, including videos, photos, and profile information using the Facebook website. You cannot download a copy of your Facebook data from within the Facebook mobile app.

Part 1

Part 1 of 2:

Requesting Your Data

1
Open Facebook on a computer. Go to https://www.facebook.com/ in your web browser. This will open your Facebook News Feed if you're logged into your Facebook account.
- If you aren't logged into Facebook, you'll need to enter your email address (or phone number) and password in the upper-right side of the page and then click Log In before proceeding.
It's a downward-facing triangle in the upper-right corner of the Facebook page. Doing so prompts a drop-down menu.
This option is near the bottom of the drop-down menu. The Facebook Settings page will open.
It's in the upper-left side of the Settings page.
You'll find this link below the Manage Account option in the middle of the General page; it's part of the "Download a copy of your Facebook data" line there.
It's a blue button on the right side of the page. This will prompt Facebook to begin creating your backup file.
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Part 2

Part 2 of 2:

Downloading Your Data

1
Wait for a download email from Facebook. Facebook will send an email entitled "Your Facebook download is ready" to the email account that you use to log into Facebook. This email will typically arrive within 10 minutes of requesting your data.
- Facebook will also send a Facebook notification to your profile when your data is ready to be downloaded.
2
Open the download email. Open the inbox for your Facebook email address if you haven't yet done so, then click the "Your Facebook download is ready" email to open it.
- If you use Gmail with tabs, you'll find this email in your Social folder.
- Be sure to check the Spam or Junk folder if you don't receive an email from Facebook within 10 minutes.
It's in the body of the email. Doing so takes you to the data download page on Facebook.
You'll find this button to the right of your download file near the middle of the page.
When prompted, type in the password you use to log into Facebook.
6
Click Submit. It's a blue button at the bottom of the pop-up window. Doing so will prompt a ZIP folder containing all of your Facebook data to begin downloading onto your computer.
- Depending on your web browser's settings, you may have to click Save or OK (or select a save location) before the data will download.
7
Extract the ZIP folder's contents. This is necessary if you want to be able to view the pages and images in the data files:
- Windows - Double-click the ZIP folder to open it, click the Extract tab, click Extract all, and click Extract at the bottom of the window that appears. This will open all your Facebook data files in a new window.
- Mac - Double-click the ZIP folder and wait for it to finish extracting itself. A new folder will appear with all of your Facebook data files in it.
8
Open the "Index.htm" file to browse your Facebook data. Double-click the "Index.htm" file to open it in a web browser. This will display a page with your name, personal information, and profile picture. Click the tabs on the left to view all the additional information associated with your Facebook account.
- These pages only exist on your computer's hard drive (the address at the top of the browser should start with file:/// and not http). You can access any of the original photos in the "photos" folder of the ZIP file you extracted.
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Tips

Logging out of Facebook in your browser or on your smartphone before you browse will limit the amount of information (e.g., browsing habits, ad preferences, and search history) that Facebook can gather, as will clearing your browser's cookies before exiting a browsing session.^{[1]XResearch source}
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Ultimately, the best way to prevent Facebook from accessing your data is by using it as little as possible. Deleting the Facebook and Messenger mobile apps from your iPhone, Android, or tablet is a good place to start, as it limits your Facebook use to desktop; this prevents Facebook from tracking things like your location and app usage as heavily.
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Perhaps the most intrusive data collected by the Facebook mobile app is your location information. You can disable location information by opening your smartphone's Settings app, opening Privacy and then Location Services (iPhone) or Apps (Android), selecting Facebook, and turning off the location access.
- You'll likely want to repeat this process for Facebook Messenger if you have it installed.
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Warnings

While you can lock down your Facebook to ensure that others can't see much your data, Facebook will always have access to things like your profile information, name change history, photos, videos, and posts.
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