See your own shadow

Where the export button is.

Ask each of these for a copy of what it holds about you; the links go to the platform's own tool, not a guide about it.

PlatformExport toolWhat you getFormatsWaitChecked
Google takeout.google.com Data from the Google services you use — Gmail, Drive, Photos, Calendar, YouTube, search and location history — chosen service by service .zip or .tgz Minutes to a few days; most arrive the same day 9 Sept 2026
Meta — Facebook facebook.com/dyi Posts, photos, videos, messages, friends list, ads and activity info HTML or JSON Not stated by Meta; once ready, 4 days to download 9 Sept 2026
Meta — Instagram Accounts Center — Your information and permissions Your Instagram activity, personal info, connections, logged info (incl. location and search history), security/login info, off-Instagram apps, preferences, and ad info; media too if exporting to an external service Selectable, but Instagram's own page never names the options (unlike Facebook's HTML/JSON) (unverified which) Up to 30 days to receive the export link; 4 days to download once ready 10 Sept 2026
Apple privacy.apple.com Account and sign-in records, iCloud data, app-usage info, purchase history Original formats, plus .vcf/.ics/.html/.eml and .json/.csv/.pdf About 7 days to prepare; 14 days to download once ready 9 Sept 2026
X x.com/settings/download_your_data Posts, direct messages, media, account info ZIP with HTML and JSON Usually 24–48 hours, longer for large accounts; link expires in 7 days 9 Sept 2026
TikTok tiktok.com/setting/download-your-data Videos watched and posted, comments, messages, login history, follows TXT or JSON 24 hours to 4 days; link expires 4 days after ready 9 Sept 2026
Microsoft account.microsoft.com/privacy Search, browsing, location, voice, and app/service activity tied to the account (unverified) Reported as within 30 days; not confirmed on Microsoft's own page 9 Sept 2026
Amazon amazon.com — Request My Data Orders, payments, Alexa recordings, device info, browsing and search history, support records ZIP of .csv files Amazon states usually under a month, sometimes longer; 90 days to download once ready 9 Sept 2026
LinkedIn linkedin.com — Get a copy of your data Profile, positions, education, connections, messages, job applications, skills, and more ZIP of .csv files Selected categories within minutes; full archive within 24 hours; link lasts 72 hours 9 Sept 2026
Reddit reddit.com/settings/data-request Posts, comments, messages, chat history, votes, saved items, IP logs, and account/ads preferences — 38 named files as of this check .csv files (whether they're zipped together isn't stated on Reddit's own page) Up to 30 days to prepare 10 Sept 2026
Spotify spotify.com/account/privacy Streaming history, library and playlists, account and usage data ZIP, multiple files (exact per-file format not confirmed) (unverified) 9 Sept 2026

Every link above sits behind a sign-in — that is the platform's own security, not ours; we read the public description of each tool and did not sign in anywhere to check it. Where a detail is marked (unverified), it is for one of two reasons: the platform's own page would not render without a login and no platform-owned source confirmed it either, or — Instagram's export format — the page rendered fine but simply never states the answer. Either way, ask the tool directly and it will tell you.

The file is smaller than the shadow.

An open project, not affiliated with any company.

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