Facebook has added a feature to its Messenger app that allows users to send their friends a map with their exact location, making it far easier to find a friend when necessary.
Previously, a user's location was sent each time that they sent a message on Messenger, provided location services were allowed, however, now users can share a location within a conversation.
"With this update, you have full control over when and how you share your location information," said Facebook in a statement. "You only send a location when you tap on the location pin and then choose to send it as a separate message. You can also share a location — like a meeting spot — even if you're not there."
In fact, the announcement should put privacy advocates at ease because of the fact that it gives users far more control over when and how they share their location.
The fact that a user can share a location that is not their current one will also be helpful for users, as it will allow them to share a meeting spot for later in the day or a restaurant at which they are meeting friends.
"To get started, just tap the More icon or the location pin at the bottom of your screen," said Stan Chudnovsky, head of product for Facebook Messenger. "If you want to tell a friend which restaurant to meet you at, search for the restaurant and send a map of where it is. If you're running late, send a map of where you are to your friend to let him or her know how far away you are."
Of course, Facebook is quick to tell users that nothing will be changing in terms of the permissions needed or when the app will ping for the whereabouts of the user. Messenger will essentially only get a location when a user tells the app to. Users can also disable location services entirely through the settings of the Facebook Messenger app.
Facebook has long been scrutinized for how it handles user privacy, largely because of how it collects user data with the goal of advertising to those users. This not only applies to user location, but also other data that users enter into their Facebook accounts and profiles.
Of course, WhatsApp, another messaging service that Facebook owns, has long had a similar location-sharing feature. Facebook acquired WhatsApp for a massive $22 billion in February 2014.
