Facebook adds app passwords to site security

Facebook is ramping up security by giving people the option of setting passwords for games or other third-party applications added to pages at the leading online social network.

Facebook is ramping up security by giving people the option of setting passwords for games or other third-party applications added to pages at the leading online social network.

Facebook said Thursday that 'App Passwords,' along with a forgotten password recovery feature called 'Trusted Friends,' will be added in the coming days to safeguards at the service used by about 800 million people worldwide.

'There are tons of applications you can use by logging in with your Facebook credentials,' the California-based firm said in an online post.

'However, in some cases you may want to have a unique password for that application.'

Users will be able to set passwords for applications by going to a security section in account settings.

The Trusted Friends feature will let Facebook members pick three to five people who will serve as touch points if main account passwords are forgotten.

'We'll send codes to the friends you have selected, then you can log back into your account using these codes after your friends have passed them along to you,' Facebook said.

'It's sort of similar to giving a house key to your friends when you go on vacation -- pick the friends you most trust in case you need their help in the future.'