Facebook tests tool that may help you befriend strangers

Facebook is testing a feature that can point to the commonalities you have with other random users -- whether you share a neighbourhood with them or went to the same university. The feature, called "things in common", may help you connect with random commentators on public posts, Engadget reported on Sunday.

The tool, currently available for a few users in the US, displays titbits of information a user has in common with people they are not friends with. Facebook said the tags that the feature uses will not violate a user's privacy as they only show information that are publicly available, meaning the same information can also be seen by someone by visiting a user's profile. The tool is being tested as part of Facebook's efforts to make public discussions more meaningful, the report said.

"Knowing shared things in common helps people connect," a Facebook spokesperson told Engadget. "We're testing adding a 'things in common' label that will appear above comments from people who you're not friends with but you might have something in common with. Only information that people made publicly available on their profiles will be eligible to show up."

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