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#TwitterMigration? How to download your data from Twitter if you're making the switch

#TwitterMigration. #Twittershutdown. #TwitterIsDead. These trending hashtags pose a looming threat – is this the end of Twitter?

The speculation comes as a growing number of Twitter employees resign after Elon Musk gave an ultimatum: commit to an "extremely hardcore" work environment and build "a breakthrough Twitter 2.0" or leave. Those who chose the latter would receive three months of severance.

A November study from Montclair State University also found a spike in hate speech on the platform since Musk's takeover. Changes in the company's infrastructure and operations have prompted "just in case" tweets with users sharing other social media profiles and plans to move to other sites.

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How to download your Twitter data

Downloading your Twitter data will give you access to a file of account information, history, activity, interests, ad data and apps and devices.

  1. Go to "Settings and Support." On desktop, this is under the three dots on the left-hand navigation rail.

  2. Click "Settings and privacy." On mobile app, swipe to the right to find the menu on the left side of your screen.

  3. Select "Your account," the first option in the settings menu.

  4. Click "Download an archive of your data." You'll be prompted to enter your password again and you may be asked to verify your identity by phone or email.

  5. Request a ZIP file with an archive of your data.

Don't expect a file with your oldest tweets right away. This process can take 24 hours or even longer. Twitter will send you an in-app notification when the archive is ready to download.

Is Twitter shutting down?

With Twitter staff leaving and the announcement of the temporary building lockout, many speculate Twitter is approaching a shutdown as well. Users flocked to downdetector.com to report thousands of Twitter outages late Thursday night into Friday morning. But that doesn't mean the app is saying goodbye – after all, Musk did purchase it for $44 billion.

As users reported outages, Musk tweeted that the app "just hit another all-time high in Twitter usage." He also responded to concerns that the app was shutting down.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Is Twitter shutting down? How to download account data just in case.