Facebook expands downloadable archive information
updated 03:55 pm EDT, Thu April 12, 2012
Facebook offers more downloadable user data
Facebook on Thursday detailed changes to its Download Your Information option that has been available since 2010. It has expanded the kind and amount of information users can download of their account history. Users can now get previous names, friend requests they've made, and the IP addresses they've logged in from.
Until now, users have only had the option to download photos, posts, messages, the list of friends, and chat conversations. The change is brought on by pressure to conform to Europe's strict privacy laws. The Irish Data Protection Commission made a deal with Facebook last December that would see the social network provide more data to users and change its data protection policies.
The changes were agreed to be made by July. Some 40,000 European Facebook users requested all of the information Facebook compiled on them, and the social network has 40 days to comply under European privacy law.
University of Vienna law student Max Schrems, who initiated the talks with the Irish Data Protection Commission, believes these moves aren't enough. The new deal only covers 39 data categories but Facebook collects 84 categories on each users. This doesn't meet European Data Protectian Laws, he argued.
As usual, the upgrade is rolling out gradually, and Facebook promises more categories of information will become available in the future. Users can access this from their Facebook Account Settings page. [via NYTimes]
