As the years go by, Facebook has developed tools in order to make it easier for people to view and download data on how they’ve used their services.

Facebook explains: “We first launched Access Your Information in 2018 so that people could have a central place to access their information on Facebook. Now that we’ve had some time to learn about how people use it, we’ve reorganized and given it a new coat of paint, so that it’s even more usable and transparent. We want to make sure that your information on Facebook is useful, easy to understand, and easy to find.”

Facebook has launched an updated version of its “Access Your Information” tool, and it aims to provide more transparency around the data that Facebook collects, and how it can be used to target you with ads.

Facebook’s “Access Your Information” Updated Version:

Moreover, the refresh is likely a means for Facebook to get ahead of Apple’s coming IDFA update, which will better inform iOS users, via direct pop-up notifications, as to the data being collected by each app they use. Even though that’s not exactly how Facebook is framing it.

Regarding the updated version of ‘Access Your Information”, as you can see in these images, the new format breaks down your personal data into several categories, as opposed to just two (‘Your Information’ and ‘Information About You’) in its initial iteration.

Here are the new categories:

• Your Activity Across Facebook
• Friends and Followers
• Preferences
• Personal Information
• Logged Information
• Ads Information
• Apps and Websites Off of Facebook
• Security and Login Information

Moreover, Facebook has also added new search functionality to the tool so you can more easily find specific data categories and types. In addition to links to download your info, or delete any information that you don’t want Facebook to track, making it easier to manage your personal data profile.

According to Facebook: “We are also adding information about how your data may be used to personalize your experience on Facebook. For example, you might see that your primary location was one of multiple signals that informed a recent ad you saw for a food delivery app. This information is already available in our Why Am I Seeing This tool, but we wanted to make it easier for people to discover.”

Facebook says: “All of these changes were made in response to our own research that showed us how people interacted with Access Your Information already — for example, the new categories were developed based on what people were already clicking on.”

Moreover, the updated version of “Access Your Information” is now available on iOS and Android, and will be available on other platforms soon.