Anyone: is Snapchat evil?

[matthew1]

... compared to say Facebook (evil) or Instagram (evil)?

My 12-year-old son wants a Snapchat account, and as a Gen X'er, I don't know anything about it. I told him I'd research it.

All opinions welcome, empirical or subjective.

[BlackBart]

What is snapchat?

Signed - suddenly old person


My son recently went to Scotland for two weeks. They wanted to charge him some stupid rate for international data and cel coverage, so he and his girlfriend used snapchat to send each other temporary messages and pics. Worked pretty slick.

[hughiescho]

There are definitely some pretty sinister individuals on social media platforms like snapchat. Specifically relevant to young boys is the story here: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba ... -1.6494054

[abscate]

We delayed all social media apps to high school. Insist on Development of IRL social skills first, then social media. I didn’t have any Y chromosomes so not sure if that influences, and of course, individual variations are larger than gender.

[BlackBart]

We’re lucky we just missed this era with our kids. They didn’t get phones until HS.

My son in his 20s says:

“Company is a bit sketch. If you're smart with how you use it, I don't think there's much harm.“

“They save every image that's ever sent through the service. Last I heard, they don't do anything with it, yet. But they have it all should they figure out a way to monetize it or something.“

“So it's not great for private banking info or anything else you don't want in the public sphere. But I'm pretty sure Facebook does the same thing and Instagram is owned by Facebook.”

“We use Snapchat mainly for quick cat photos or funny things we see at the grocery store that aren't worth taking and saving an actual picture. Also nice because it's instant messaging rather than sms so it works over wifi if you don't have cell coverage.”

[99v70r]

Overview of Snapchat

Snapchat is a messaging app that primarily focuses on sending photos back and forth. The messages in the app are ephemeral - you can only open a photo message once and then you can never see it again, and chat messages usually disappear too (unless the sender OR receiver chooses to "save" it). Users can also add photos to their "story", which is a temporary collection of photos that anyone in their friends list can see. Photos in your "story" disappear after 24 hours.

Dangers

Biggest issue with Snapchat is privacy and safety from other users. Snapchat collects your location data and, by default, will show anyone you are friends with exactly where you are at all times. Every photo is also geotagged, so Snapchat knows exactly where the photo was taken. If you post the photo publicly, anyone in the world can view it and see where it was taken. Anyone can also go the map in the app and see where people are actively posting public photos, click on that spot, and see all the recent posts in that area.

This poses some serious risks. If your kid befriends a malicious actor on the app, that other user could see exactly where your kid is at all times. Also, if your kid is taking photos in your house and posting them publicly, Snapchat will highlight you house on the map as an "active area" to indicate to other users that there are photos to see from that location. They can then click on that location to see all of those public photos.

Is Snapchat "Evil"

Beyond the risks associated with other users, Snapchat is like any typical big tech company. They collect user data to create targeted ads toward the user. They have a lot of your data, including your location, on their servers. By collecting your location all the time they can identify where you live, where you work, where you go to school, etc. They will categorize your hobbies, interests, day-to-day schedule, friends list, message history, and all the data you give them when you sign up (name, birthday, email).

I think there is growing unrest in the public around companies that operate in this model (their "product" is user data to sell to advertisers), and I support this opinion. I would avoid Snapchat if possible - or, more realistically - limit what it can do. I use it, but I have never granted the app permission to my location data and I deny it every time it asks. I also never make public posts.

[matthew1]

Thanks 99v70r. My son got Snapchat while he was in Seattle... his mom OK'ed it and they installed it. So the genie is out of the bottle.

I think I need to do a settings review with my son... sit down and also review his friends list and activity.

He got the talk from his mom about friending strangers, and he confirmed this with me. I have him school years -- 9 months -- and his mom has him summers.