--- description: The social network will ban gun sales between users on the site. title: Facebook Says It Will Ban Private Gun Sales on the Site image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8e82182648f3f660/69887b5f524fc074afdf6871/facebook-logo-003.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Business](/section/business/) ## Business Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Tech](/tag/time-section-tech/) ## Tech Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Facebook Says It Will Ban Gun Sales Between Users by [Daniel White](/author/daniel-white/) ## Daniel White Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Updated: Dec 13, 2023 7:28 PM CUTPublished: Jan 30, 2016 12:01 AM CUT  A man is silhouetted against a Facebook logo as he poses with a laptop in this photo illustration taken in Zenica, Bosnia, on Aug. 14, 2013. A man is silhouetted against a Facebook logo as he poses with a laptop in this photo illustration taken in Zenica, Bosnia, on Aug. 14, 2013.Dado Ruvic—Reuters by [Daniel White](/author/daniel-white/) ## Daniel White Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Updated: Dec 13, 2023 7:28 PM CUTPublished: Jan 30, 2016 12:01 AM CUT Social networking giant [Facebook](http://time.com/4196833/facebook-fb-earnings-q4-2015/ "undefined") announced Friday that it would ban the private sale of guns on its site, and on its photo-sharing platform Instagram. Although the site itself does not act as a retailer of firearms, it has allowed users to sell guns on Facebook pages or in Instagram posts. The new prohibitions will affect only private and person-to-person sales, and not licensed gun sellers. “Over the last two years, more and more people have been using Facebook to discover products and to buy and sell things to one another,” said Monika Bickert, Facebook’s head of product policy. “We are continuing to develop, test and launch new products to make this experience even better for people and are updating our regulated goods policies to reflect this evolution.” Those policies already prohibit trade in marijuana, prescription pills and other illicit substances. Firearms are now to be added to the list. Facebook’s decision comes as the [Obama administration](http://time.com/4167475/obama-gun-control-executive-action/ "undefined") makes a push for tighter control on gun sales. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4200996/facebook-bans-gun-sales/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4200996/facebook-bans-gun-sales/"},"headline":"Facebook Says It Will Ban Gun Sales Between Users","datePublished":"2016-01-30T00:01:36.000Z","dateModified":"2023-12-13T19:28:38.000Z","description":"Private users will be prohibited from selling guns on the site","url":"https://time.com/4200996/facebook-bans-gun-sales/","keywords":["Tech","Social Media","Barack Obama","facebook","Guns"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8e82182648f3f660/69887b5f524fc074afdf6871/facebook-logo-003.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Daniel White","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/daniel-white/"}],"articleSection":"Business","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8e82182648f3f660/69887b5f524fc074afdf6871/facebook-logo-003.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"A man is silhouetted against a video screen with an Facebook logo as he poses with an Dell laptop in this photo illustration taken in the central Bosnian town of Zenica, August 14, 2013. 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