(EFE).- Facebook has developed a tool to adapt to a tougher regime of internet censorship in China in order to gain entry into markets in the country, The New York Times reported late Wednesday.

The software, which Facebook has so far only tested internally, will enable user entries to be censored before they appear on the feeds in order to comply with Chinese laws, said the newspaper, citing employees and former workers of the company under conditions of anonymity.

Without directly responding to NYT, Facebook released a statement regarding its plans in China.

“We have long said that we are interested in China, and are spending time understanding and learning more about the country,” said Facebook spokesperson Debbie Frost.

Frost also said Facebook is yet to take any decision about approaching China.

Facebook, has restricted content to comply with local laws in countries such as Russia, Turkey and Pakistan, however, the tool created for China is supposedly a step ahead.

China blocked Facebook in 2009 following a sectarian uprising in Urumqi, capital of the northwestern Xinjiang province, which left some 200 dead, claiming the activists mobilized themselves with the help of the social networking site.

Users need a virtual private network or VPN to access Facebook in China.

Facebook’s creator Mark Zuckerberg, who speaks a little Mandarin, share cordial relations with Chinese President Xi Jinping and has made several visits to China in recent months, according to the NYT report. EFE