Facebook Tests 'Buy' Button That Allows Users To Make Purchases Through The Site

Social networking site Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) is testing a “Buy” button that allows users to make purchases directly from their news feeds.

A limited number of medium and small U.S. businesses are participating in the test run, with the convenient feature available on desktop and mobile versions of the Menlo Park, California-based social service.

With this new feature comes the question of security. How comfortable will users be submitting their credit card information on the site? Facebook assured users the feature will have strict privacy settings and will not distribute or share anyone’s credit or debit card information. They will also have the option to save their payment data for future transactions.

“We’ve built this feature with privacy in mind, and have taken steps to help make the payment experience safe and secure. None of the credit or debit card information people share with Facebook when completing a transaction will be shared with other advertisers, and people can select whether or not they’d like to save payment information for future purchases,” Facebook said in a blog post Thursday.

Currently, Facebook allows users to make payments through third-party apps for virtual goods and games like “Farm Heroes Saga” and “Jelly Splash.”

According to Reuters, Facebook isn’t currently making any profit from the products sold with the “Buy” button, but that may change.