Facebook’s Google Photos transfer tool, first announced for the US and Canada back in April, is now available globally.
The new data transfer tool allows you to create copies of all of the photos or videos on your Facebook account and transfer them to a linked Google Photos one. The tool was first made available in select parts of Africa, Asia Pacific, and Latin America last December and it’s been expanding to more countries since.
This is part of an industry Data Transfer Project that’s meant to increase the portability of your info between services. It’s partly meant to reduce scrutiny from antitrust regulators worried that internet giants are using locked-down data to discourage competition. Still, the immediate user benefits are obvious you won’t have to keep a Facebook account open just to preserve all those family photos and concert clips for posterity.
Here’s how to use the new data transfer tool on Facebook:
While logged into your Facebook account, click on the down arrow at the end of the upper menu bar and select “Settings.”
Select the tab that reads “Your Facebook Information.”
Click on “Transfer a copy of your Photos or Videos.”
Google, Facebook, Microsoft, and Twittermade a joint effort around improved data sharing tools, both between the companies and for consumers. Apple later joined the open-source effort, called the Data Transfer Project, in 2019. However, it’s unclear when Facebook will add support for other services.
