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Facebook adds Android app support for anonymity service Tor so users can hide location, enjoy greater privacy

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Tor said it has no plans to support Facebook’s mobile app for Apple’s iPhone. Photo: Reuters

Users of Facebook’s Android app can now privately browse the world’s largest social network through the anonymity service Tor, the company said on Tuesday.

The feature expands a collaboration that allowed Facebook users to directly access its site via Tor’s browser on personal computers. It comes as policymakers and technology companies debate whether digital privacy should be curbed to help regulators more easily thwart hackers.

Kate Krauss, a spokeswoman for the Tor Project, a group of developers that oversees development of the anonymity software, said Android support could help expand Tor due to Facebook’s large following. Facebook has more than 1.5 billion monthly active users.

“Everybody in the world needs more privacy online and almost everybody is on Facebook,” Krauss said via Signal, an encrypted messaging service.

“This will allow people to choose whether to share their location or not. For some people, this is convenience. For others it is lifesaving.”

READ MORE: Ten times faster loading speeds: Facebook rolls out Instant Articles in Hong Kong to keep readers glued to its mobile app

Tor has no plans to support Facebook’s mobile app for Apple’s iPhone, Krauss said.

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