Worried that exporting your LinkedIn connections could cause account warnings or extra security checks? Use LinkedIn’s ‘Download your data’ tool to export your connections. If you use automation to extract additional data directly from LinkedIn, you violate LinkedIn’s User Agreement and increase account risk.
Here’s the safe export path and the behaviors that put your account at risk.
What is the safe, allowed way to export your LinkedIn connections?
Use LinkedIn’s built-in ‘Download your data’ feature to export your connections list. If your goal is to move your network into a CRM or keep a backup, start here.
This works because LinkedIn provides it as the supported method for data portability. The data is limited by design—LinkedIn restricts what fields you can export to protect user privacy and control data access.
How to export your connections via LinkedIn
- Go to Settings & Privacy.
- Open Data privacy.
- Select Get a copy of your data.
- Choose Connections from the list, then click Request archive.
As of February 2026, the export includes:
- First name
- Last name
- Company
- Position
- Connection date
Fields may change—confirm on LinkedIn’s help page.
Email addresses are excluded unless a contact’s settings allow sharing. LinkedIn restricts email export to honor user privacy and applicable regulations. To find email addresses of your LinkedIn connections compliantly, use permitted enrichment methods after your export.
Use this official export as your baseline. If you need more fields, add them after the export using sources and enrichment methods where you have permission and a clear compliance basis, rather than trying to pull extra data from inside LinkedIn. You can orchestrate this enrichment with PhantomBuster Automations that call permitted data sources and push results to your CRM.
What should you avoid when exporting connection data?
Avoid third-party tools, scripts, or browser extensions that extract connection data directly from LinkedIn beyond what the official export provides. This includes tools that claim they can pull private contact details or enrich profiles inside the LinkedIn interface.
The risk here is less about one specific vendor and more about the behavior the tool generates. LinkedIn evaluates session behavior—not just the output file. Detection signals come from speed, repetition, and volume. Repetitive, fast, high-density extraction is detectable and increases enforcement risk.
Risk often comes from how fast behavior changes, not just how much activity happens.
— PhantomBuster Product Expert, Brian Moran
Examples of patterns that trigger extra scrutiny include:
- Sharp spikes in profile views within minutes—sudden jumps from baseline activity.
- Looping profile-to-profile clicks that don’t resemble normal browsing behavior.
- Data access volume that exceeds typical human usage over a session.
- Repeated CAPTCHA or two-factor authentication prompts during a single session.
Early signs include extra security checks—forced logouts, repeated re-auth prompts, or ‘unusual activity’ warningsEarly signs include extra security checks—forced logouts, repeated re-auth prompts, or ‘unusual activity’ warnings. Treat these as a signal to slow down and return to standard workflows, not as something to push through.
Session friction is often an early warning, not an automatic ban.
— PhantomBuster Product Expert, Brian Moran
Safe vs. risky methods: What LinkedIn allows vs. what triggers enforcement
| Method | Allowed? | Risk level | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| LinkedIn’s official export | Yes | Low | LinkedIn-supported workflow, data is limited |
| Third-party automated extraction from LinkedIn | No | High | Conflicts with the User Agreement; enforcement sensitivity varies by behavior |
| Browser extensions that pull extra fields from LinkedIn pages | No | High | Violates the User Agreement; detection relies on session behavior |
The lowest-risk approach is to export via LinkedIn, then enrich with sources where you have permission and a clear compliance basis. That keeps your LinkedIn account usable for prospecting and relationship management over the long term.
Key takeaway: Export via LinkedIn, enrich outside LinkedIn
LinkedIn allows connection exports when you use the official ‘Download your data’ feature. Using automation to extract additional data directly from LinkedIn violates the User Agreement and increases account risk.
Keep the workflow simple and compliant:
- Export connections via LinkedIn’s data download.
- Import into your CRM for hygiene and relationship-based follow-up.
- If you need more fields, enrich using compliant, consent-aware sources outside LinkedIn.
Frequently asked questions
What’s the LinkedIn-supported way to export your connections, and what data will you get?
For most users, the LinkedIn-supported method is ‘Get a copy of your data’ in Settings & Privacy. LinkedIn exports a CSV with basic connection details like name, company, role, and connection date. Emails appear only if the contact’s settings allow sharing.
Enterprise and partner APIs follow separate terms outside the standard user export process.
Why is using browser extensions or third-party extractors to export LinkedIn connections risky, even if others do it?
These tools rely on unauthorized data extraction behavior that conflicts with LinkedIn’s User Agreement. LinkedIn enforces based on behavior patterns. High-speed, repetitive extraction is detectable—even if others say it ‘worked’ for them.
What worked yesterday without consequence can trigger enforcement today. Risk accumulates over sessions, not single actions.
How does LinkedIn detect unauthorized export behavior, and what early warning signs should you watch for?
LinkedIn evaluates session behavior and activity density. Fast, repetitive activity and sudden jumps in extraction volume are common risk factors. Early warnings include extra security checks, such as forced logouts, repeated re-auth prompts, or ‘unusual activity’ banners.
These signals indicate that LinkedIn’s detection systems have flagged your session. Continuing the same behavior after seeing these warnings increases enforcement risk.
How can an SDR or BDR use connection exports for CRM and outreach without crossing compliance boundaries?
Use the official export for CRM hygiene and relationship-based follow-up, not bulk off-platform marketing. A LinkedIn connection is not automatic consent to email campaigns. If you need enrichment, use consent-aware sources, keep a human review step for targeting, and ramp activity gradually so your process stays consistent and defensible.
To automate the admin work, use PhantomBuster Automations to orchestrate list organization, permissioned enrichment, and CRM updates in one workflow—no browser extensions.