In another move designed to bolster its public image and counter criticism of its privacy policies, Facebook will now allow users to download all their data off the site.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg introduced a service Wednesday called “Download your data.” The service essentially allows users to download every piece of information they have on Facebook – including personal data, photos, notes and messages. The social network will then bundle all that data into a single file and allow the user to download that file.
With the new service, Facebook is following in the footsteps of other technology companies, such as Google. Big tech sites often allow users to download and migrate their data to other services to counter criticism of anticompetitive behaviour – in essence, users can always take their data and go somewhere else, and so are not locked in to one service.
Facebook also introduced more tools to allow users to see exactly what the applications they've installed are doing, including what sort of personal information the applications are accessing. The move is an attempt to give users more control of their data.
The company is also introducing algorithms to cluster users' friends based on their social circles. The purpose of such algorithms is to show users more frequent updates from other users they are close friends with, and fewer updates from more-distant acquaintances.
