Facebook Inc. has told its employees to preserve all internal documents and communications for legal reasons, as governments and regulators have started inquiries into its operation.

The increased scrutiny comes after former Facebook employee and whistleblower Frances Haugen leaked documents which she said showed the company chose profit over user safety.

Earlier in October, Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell called on Facebook Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg to preserve all documents related to a testimony from Haugen.

"On Tuesday, Facebook sent a legal hold notice to all personnel. Document preservation requests are part of the process of responding to legal inquiries," a Facebook spokesperson said.

The news was first reported by the New York Times.