Facebook lets Google index info from Android mobile app

SAN FRANCISCO — Facebook is allowing Google to crawl and index information on its Android mobile app.

Results from Google searches on smartphones will display some public content from Facebook's app, such as public profile information. The results will appear as "deep links" that take users to the Facebook mobile app.

Google is trying to make sure its search engine remains useful on smartphones. Google already indexes information from public Facebook profiles on the Web. But it can't always index information inside mobile apps, which is where people spend the bulk of their time on smartphones.

Google confirmed in an email that it's indexing the Facebook app.

As on the Web, Google cannot show content that is shared privately, Facebook said in an emailed statement.

“When people search for public Facebook content on the mobile web, those who use Facebook for Android can now click through and go straight to the Facebook app," the statement said.

The news was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.