Snapchat's Dirty Little Secret

As I have been working in Student Ministry over the past decade I have seen many trends in youth culture come and go.  This is especially true in the area of technology. 

Every year there is some new game, program, or device that students are drawn to.  The latest trend through the spread of smart phones has been applications or apps.

Traditionally I have always viewed technology as a double edged sword.  Everything that students indulge themselves in has the potential for good, but also a potential for bad.  Many times it’s as simple as too much of anything is bad.

What I like to do is check out the latest “thing” and see how the Student Ministry can leverage it to draw students together and connect with God and His word.  Normally I try not to steer students or parents away from any of these things.  I only try and help them see the dangers.

Let me be clear – this post is different.  I have become increasingly convinced that there is one app your son or daughter should stay far away from: the platform is known as Snapchat.

 I want to make sure you are aware of the dangers of Snapchat and the lies that this platform is selling your son and daughter.  My goal is to make sure you delete (or never download) Snapchat.  The only good things that can come from it – are all things you can do with other basic messaging apps.  The things that make Snapchat unique are the very things that make it extremely dangerous for our students to have in their hands.

Most of the students in my ministry have it on their phones and use it regularly.  I wanted to know more about it so I downloaded it and started tinkering around.  I asked some of my friends how it worked, and I started doing some research.  The more I have discovered the stronger I feel about making sure Snapchat is not a part of our students’ lives.

Snapchat:  The Basics

• Snapchat is a photo messaging application (app). 
• Using the app, users can take photos, record videos, and text and drawings, and send them to a controlled list of recipients.
• These sent photographs and videos are known as “Snaps”
• The creator of each “Snap” sets a time limit for how long recipients can view their Snaps – after which they will be hidden from the device and deleted form Snapchat’s servers. 

The information above is what Snapchat communicates to it’s users.  You can already see how this app might be dangerous – because many students lack the foresight and maturity to resist the temptation to use this app inappropriately.  That fact alone makes this app something to avoid – but the reason I recommend you delete it as soon as possible has to do with some information that has recently surfaced due to a lawsuit against Snapchat.

Snapchat’s Dirty Little Secret

Everything that Snapchat communicates about user privacy is a lie.  Everything that is posted online is public, even the things you post “anonymously” could be connected back to your name one day.    Everything you do is captured and stored and everything can be traced back to its source. 

Everything that a user of Snapchat posts is automatically the property of Snapchat.  When you agree to the terms of service you agree that all of the data you submit is theirs and they can use it any way they choose.  That’s the reason it is a free app.  They are collecting data to sell to someone else – and you are the data.

Snapchat is funded with venture capital money.  So ultimately the goal of Snapchat is to sell it for a ton of money.  And what gets sold isn’t just the platform but all of the data as well.  You have no control over where your “Snaps” go and what they are used for. 

Not sure why that’s a big deal?  Well Angie Varona could tell you of the dangers.  At the age of 14 she had private photos of herself taken against her knowledge.  Now at the age of 18 she is one of the most recognized sex symbols on the internet.  There are over 63,000 photos with her name attached, images have been changed, photoshopped, and altered.  Everyday she suffers from the exploitation she has experienced due to this breach in her privacy, never intending to have the entire world to have access to her in this way.

This is Snapchat’s dirty little secret – that at any moment everything you were told was private could be up for sale to the highest bidder and could be used in any way possible and legally there is nothing you could do about it.  Our students, need our help to protect them from this danger.  We need to draw the hard line and help them realize that nothing you post online is ever really private.

I urge you to do some more research.  Have a tough conversation with your son or daughter and draw the hard line.  Don’t buy the lies – instead protect your family and your future, because Snapchat’s dirty little secret won’t stay secret for long.


For more information, go to our student site and download this pdf:   Why You Should Delete Snapchat.