Categories: Apps & Software News   Tags: , ,

Facebook has added a new feature that activists have been crying out for for ages: you can now simply get the messages, photos, videos, friends lists, events info and notes from your Facebook account onto your computer. The new option will pack all the items up into a Zip file which can be opened and viewed in your web browser of choice. Result!

The new Facebook data download option will be rolled out over the next few days. To grab you info, you’ll just need to sign into Facebook and head for Account and then Account Settings. At the bottom of the page you’ll find a button marked Download Your Information. Click that and Facebook will begin collecting all your data together. Facebook says it’ll take a few hours for a link to your Zip file to be emailed to you.

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It’s a good move by Facebook to finally allow users to export their data and a brave one. With the prospect of Google Me on the horizon and the anti-Facebook Diaspora out there, it’ll make it much easier for Facebook users to ditch the social network if they want to. Facebook is betting they won’t, after all, even if you grab your data, lots of your friends will still be there.

You can see a video from Facebook on how to export your data here. Ironically, it’s not embeddable.

Let us know: will you be using the Facebook data download to jump ship or just to keep your information backed up? Do issues like the Facebook iPhone app scandal we highlighted yesterday make you want to leave?

Out now | £free | Facebook

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