Facebook Inc.’s changes to its privacy policy have drawn the attention of U.S. regulators who have discussed the matter with the most popular social-networking service, an official said.

Privacy groups on Sept. 4 asked the Federal Trade Commission to prevent Facebook from changing its data use policies, citing concerns on how the Menlo Park, California-based company handles user information for advertising. The proposed update would violate a settlement with the trade commission, the groups said in a letter.

“As in all cases we’re monitoring compliance with the order, and part of that involves interacting with Facebook,” Peter Kaplan, a spokesman for the FTC, said in an interview. “We talked with them about the specific changes.”

The changes “clarify and explain” Facebook’s existing practices, Jodi Seth, a Washington-based spokeswoman for the company, said in an e-mail.

“We routinely discuss policy updates with the FTC and this time is no different,” Seth said. “Our updated policies do not grant Facebook any additional rights to use consumer information in advertising.”