Facebook Pay Lets You Make Purchases, Send Money Inside Apps
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Instead of focusing on privacy, political manipulation, and content concerns, Facebook has launched its own payment system.
Introduced on Tuesday, the unimaginatively named Facebook Pay lets users shop, donate, and reimburse via the social network’s various platforms.
“People already use payments across our apps,” Deborah Liu, VP of marketplace and commerce, wrote in a blog announcement.”Facebook Pay will make these transactions easier while continuing to ensure your payment information is secure and protected.”
Rolling out now to Facebook and Messenger users in the US, Facebook Pay can be used for fundraisers, in-game purchases, event tickets, person-to-person payments, and purchases from select Pages and businesses on Marketplace.
Simply visit Settings > Facebook Pay on the main app or website to add a payment method; most major credit and debit cards are supported, as well as PayPal.
Arrange it up app-by-app, or for use across all platforms (where available).
“We won’t automatically set up Facebook Pay across the apps you are active on, unless you choose to do so,” Liu explained.
Facebook Pay is rolling out for fundraisers, in-game purchases, event tickets, person-to-person payments, and purchases from select Pages and businesses on Marketplace (via Facebook)
Users can also add a PIN or employ device biometrics—Touch or Face ID (the latter of which winks at you after completing transactions)—for an added layer of security.
Facebook does not receive or store biometric information.
It does, however, collect data about any purchase, including payment method, transaction date, billing, shipping, and contact details.
“We designed Facebook Pay to securely store and encrypt your card and bank account numbers,” according to the company (which was at the heart of scandals such as Cambridge Analytica and the 2016 U.S. election).
As with any keystroke you make in a Facebook-owned program, actions on Facebook Pay can (and will) be used to help customize content and ads: Buy a baseball glove on Marketplace and expect to be peddled the rest of the kit.
You can also choose whether to opt in for email marketing from businesses with which you shop or nonprofits to which you donate. Activity will not be shared with friends or to your profile or news feed unless you actively choose to.
Facebook Pay is built on existing financial infrastructure and partnerships, according to Liu, and is separate from the Calibra wallet, which will run on the Libra network.
The social media firm this summer unveiled its own stablecoin cryptocurrency, supported by financial companies like Visa, Mastercard, PayPal, and Uber.
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