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Facebook to trial mobile payments system

Alan O'Doherty
August 15, 2013

Facebook is planning to trial their own mobile-payments system, allowing customers to make payments on mobile apps using their Facebook login information.

All things D first reported the announcement from Facebook earlier today. The new system would allow shoppers who have provided Facebook with credit card information to make payments to e-commerce apps that work in partnership with the social media website. Facebook already allows users to make purchases from its desktop website but the new system would allow one-click purchases from mobile devices once credit card information has been provided.

Facebook has confirmed that the test will be conducted with JackThreads, a flash-sales site focusing on men’s fashion. Whether they expand the new payments system will likely depend on the success of the pilot scheme but if they do it may be a challenge to persuade consumers to part with credit card information. In the wake of the Edward Snowden NSA scandal the odds of people parting with any more personal information than necessary aren’t great and Facebook is going to have to fight an uphill battle to persuade consumers that their data is safe in the social media giant’s hands.

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