Facebook’s “Link History” feature has made its way to Canada.
The feature lets users view the websites they’ve visited over the past month on the platform’s mobile app.
“This feature is only available on the Facebook app for Android and iPhone,” Facebook states in a Help Center post.
Gizmodo, which was among the first to report the feature, noted that Facebook presents it as users having access to browsing history in one place “rather than another way to keep tabs on your behaviour.”
Meta notes it uses the data to target ads towards its users. Users are required to enable the feature, as it’s not on by default, a spokesperson confirmed to MobileSyrup.
Turning it off won’t lead the tech giant to stop tracking links right away. “It may take Meta up to 90 days to complete the deletion process,” the company states on its website.
Through the feature, users can remove a link or clear their history. However, it’s unclear if this would change which ads Facebook targets towards users.
To turn the feature on or off:
- Open Facebook on your mobile device and select “Menu.”
- Scroll down and tap on “Settings and privacy” to expand the section.
- Select “Settings” followed by “Browser.”
- Toggle the bar next to “Allow link history.”
To view the visited links:
- Tap your profile picture.
- Select “Settings and Privacy” followed by “Link history.”
- Tapping a link will take users to the page. To remove a single link, select the “x” next to it and tap “confirm.” To clear the entire history, choose “Clear all” in the top right, followed by “Clear.”
Updated January 3rd, 4:11PM ET: The article has been updated with additional information.
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