The Central Bureau of Investigation has joined social networking site Facebook in a bid to get help from people in cracking cases.

CBI sources said the idea of going online is first being implemented by its Bhopal unit on experimental basis which will be further followed by all its wings after assessing people's response.

The sources said the agency is garnering good response from Internet surfers and getting information from all concerned.

"Our Bhopal unit is on Facebook. People can share any information which they feel can be of some use to CBI. We will assess people's response through this and if its found encouraging we may plan the same for other units too," a senior CBI official said.

The agency will seek help in cracking the murder case of Bhopal-based RTI activist Shehla Masood through its Facebook account.

"We are getting some help related to Shehla's case.

Though it has been transferred to our Delhi unit, we feel the information may be of some use to us. The information, after cross verification, will be passed on to concerned officials probing the matter," another CBI official working with Bhopal unit, said.

Masood was shot dead outside her residence in the posh Koh-e-Fiza locality in Bhopal on August 16.

The case is being probed by the agency's Delhi-based Special Crime Unit.

The CBI, which remains clueless in the case, had announced an award of Rs five lakhs in September for anyone providing credible information about the murder.