New Facebook tool lets you 'ask' friends if they're single

Response to the addition has been mostly negative, with some Facebook users calling it 'invasive' and 'naggy'. Photo / Thinkstock

A new Facebook button that lets you ask friends if they're single or taken has been branded "invasive" and "naggy".

The "ask" button appears on the profiles of users who have left their relationship status blank, and includes a note section to explain why you're inquiring about their status.

But reactions to the addition have been mixed, with some asserting that it is an "awkward" invasion of privacy.

Once you send your "ask" request, the friend receives a notification that says: "Hello! I am wondering about your relationship!"

They can either ignore it or respond with an answer, with the option of sending it back to you directly or sharing it with the general public.

The 'ask' button appears on profiles of Facebook friends who have left their relationship status blank. Photo / Facebook

While the social media site has had an option to 'ask' for a friend's phone number, address and e-mail for some months now, the relationship status 'ask' button is a new development - and not everyone is happy about it.

One person wrote on Twitter: "If Facebook wasn't already the biggest invasion of privacy, you can now 'ask' people about their relationship status."

Others called it "naggy" and questioned its necessity, with one person writing: "How awkward is that Facebook devoted a single button to ask your friends why they're single?"

Even more people have asserted that the button is just another move Facebook has taken to exploit users' private information.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg explained this company ethos in an 2010 interview.

Facebook allows users to question their friends about the status of their relationship. Photo / Facebook

"People have really gotten comfortable not only sharing more information and different kinds, but more openly and with more people," he said.

"We view it as our role in the system to constantly be innovating and be updating what our system is to reflect what the current social norms are."

- Daily Mail