It’s easy to get annoyed by the complete lack of privacy on the internet. Literally everything you write or upload is archived forever. This concern about privacy has been the major driving force behind Snapchat’s explosive popularity. Snapchat’s whole raison d’etre was its impermanence – your snaps disappear within seconds of being seen, to never (probably) darken your door again.
Not surprisingly, Snapchat has become a huge phenomenon among people who want to engage in some online “mischief” but don’t want it to end in their Facebook feed. People say, “Hey, I can send the pictures I want because Snapchat deletes them for me!” he thought.
Do they still do it? Do these pictures really disappear forever? How can you be sure?
In this article, we’ll take a look at the privacy issues surrounding Snapchat in some detail, but here’s the gist: If you’re dying to post a photo of yourself showing off your birthday outfit, it may not go away as completely as it used to. you hope
When used for general socializing, Snapchat is a great platform to share your life with friends, family and fans. You can take snapshots, add text and emoji, and generally express yourself however you want. It seems like everyone uses Snapchat, even movie stars, musicians, fashion icons, politicians, and reality “stars”. It has truly become the place to go to keep up with the world around us. But we all know that Snapchat has a more adult side: having sex. Don’t worry – we’re not here to judge. We just want to make sure you are as informed and prepared as possible!
In theory, you would think it’s safe to post nude photos on Snapchat. After all, the image disappears after 10 seconds, never to be seen again, right? It’s not very fast.
cheating the system
It is true that Snapchat deletes your snapshots. No one can come back to your chats and adopt them for revealing the photos. Unfortunately, the software is only a small part of the entire system. There’s a human on the other end of your Snapchat session, and that person may not be as fastidious as the Snapchat system.
Do a quick Google search for “save Snapchat photos” and you’ll see over 90 million results. There are hundreds of websites that show you how to keep snapshots sent to you or simply give information about how the service works; Even TechJunkie is involved. Some will even show you how to do it without notifying the sender that you saved the snap. That alone should give you a reason to pause before blocking them all.
By default, if you are running Snapchat on a smartphone, it will detect when you take a screenshot on your device while the app is open. If you’re taking a screenshot of a snapshot, Snapchat will notify the other person. That’s fine and that’s how it should work, but of course that doesn’t stop the fact that the snap has already been sent (and saved). Once you find out that he’s betrayed your trust, you’ll likely stop sending that person photos, but that won’t go away instantly. It is now archived on the other person’s device.
Additionally, there are several ways to prevent Snapchat from detecting the screenshot. We won’t go into details on how to do it in this post, but it’s pretty simple. Anyone can turn Airplane mode on or off (this is a technique to block notification), and Snapchat screenshot detection only works on real phones. If you’re running the Bluestacks client on a PC, Snapchat will be unaware that you’ve taken a screenshot. Of course, anyone can use a second phone or camera to take an undetected picture of another phone’s screen.
Travel… and Worse
Why would anyone want to save a copy of your pictures? Aside from the obvious reasons for wanting a permanent copy of the image for themselves, there are a few different outlets for this type of material. The Internet is full of websites specializing in “travel,” the presentation of unauthorized nude images of people. The material ripped from Snapchat is one of the main drivers of these sites.
Another potential outlet, even more disturbing, is the use of such images for blackmail or blackmail purposes. Remember the 2014 iCloud scandal where nearly 500 very private celebrity pictures were leaked to the public? While there are many people that posting nude images would simply be embarrassing, there are others where it could threaten their education, job, family situation, or even their lives.
Obviously, blackmail is highly illegal, but the truth is that finding the real perpetrator is often difficult or impossible, especially when that criminal is a professional hacker. While people have legal rights over their own image, the sad truth is that exercising these personal rights can be cost prohibitive or even impossible, depending on your ability to resist.
Why You Shouldn’t Send Nudes On Snapchat
There are several reasons to avoid posting your nude or dangerous photos on Snapchat or any other app. While we never specifically tell you not to do anything, it is important that everyone is well informed. That’s one of the main purposes of the internet, isn’t it?
Internet Forever
The idea that images are only temporarily online or that social networks come and go is not entirely true. Images are archived, entire websites are saved, reverse image searches make it easy to find IDs, and images are often copied from one website to another.
Nothing is truly deleted from the web. Visit The Wayback Machine to see the full archive of almost every website ever published. Enter the URL of a website or the webpage of a site long gone and prepare to be surprised. Of course, you can also use TWB to download archival copies of legal material that has since disappeared from the Web.
Once it’s there, it’s really there
Before posting anything on a social network, ask yourself: “Would I be happy if my boss/mom/dad/sister/partner saw this?” If your answer is no, don’t post. Your target audience can tell this to your boss, family, etc. Although you don’t intend to display it, your control over that image ends after you post it.
If you get offended with the buyer, you have to trust them to do nothing with that image. Is this a chance you’re willing to take?
losing control
I’ve mentioned it before, but this point is important, so it’s worth repeating: When you post something online, on Snapchat, or anywhere else, you lose control. It’s free for anyone out there to do whatever they want. That may mean nothing, which is great. It can also mean something not so great.
Revenge porn, travel, blackmail and more can all start with the wrong nude photo in the wrong hands. It may never happen, but it is a serious risk.
Instant Story
Snapchat has a feature called Snapchat Story that lets you share images and videos, but they don’t self-destruct. It’s also incredibly easy to accidentally send something to a Snapchat Story instead of a direct message. While you can quickly remove this, you should pray that no one sees or has a chance to save the image or video you just posted.
If you accidentally hit the little rectangle icon with a plus in it, you’re there. You’ll have to act fast to take it down before anyone notices. Here’s how:
- Select the Story you just posted – This can be accessed by swiping left from the home screen.
- Tap the trash can icon at the bottom of the screen.
- Confirm deletion.
Snap will now be deleted, hopefully before anyone notices!
You Don’t Know Who You’re Talking To
If you don’t really know the person you’re talking to, you have no idea who the other person is, how old they are, what they want and what to do with your nude selfie. This person may be much older, much younger, a criminal, or generally unreliable.
Even if you think you’re communicating with someone you know and trust, you can never be completely sure that person has their phone. Maybe they lost their phone on the bus. Maybe he got a roommate. You can never be completely sure.
Colleges and Employers Control Social Networks
Theoretically, snapshots should never appear on a social network or anywhere online, as you now know, that doesn’t mean they won’t. Having your nude photos stolen not only makes life difficult in the here and now, but it can have consequences that are further down the line. Colleges, recruiters, scouts and potential employers check a potential candidate’s social networking accounts to get an idea of their personality.
What if you check your name and find your nude photos?
coming of age
Age may be relative to us, but certain in the eyes of the law. Even if people do not know the age of the person, they can run into numerous legal problems when having sex with a minor. While the problem can eventually be resolved, this is a situation that no sane person would want to get involved in.
If you don’t know or can’t verify the age of the person you’re talking to, you’re at risk if you send them anything of a potentially sexual nature.
Crime
We’ve all done stupid things in the heat of the moment. Before the digital age, if someone made a mistake, one could keep quiet or hope among those concerned. But with the internet and social networks, this is no longer true.
If the idea of posting nudity on Snapchat makes you feel a little guilty, don’t. Nobody is worth it.
Is It Safe to Post Nude Pictures on Snapchat?
By now you understood that it is not safe to post any pictures on Snapchat as they can be screenshot taken and saved by the recipient. But if you still think it’s worth the risk, be sensible about what you post.
- Avoid full-face shots if you’re posing nude.
- Hide distinctive marks such as tattoos.
- Be very selective about who you send them to.
- Establish a level of trust before sharing any personal information.
- Know exactly who you are talking to.
- If your gut says stop, stop.
Be careful there!
FAQ
What can I do if someone already has a picture of me?
If someone is maliciously using a screenshot against you, visit the eSafety Commission for further guidance. You may not be able to get the photo back or even remove it right away, but filing a complaint at the link listed above will definitely provide the help you need.
What if someone takes a screenshot of an inappropriate photo of a minor?
This is where anyone considering taking a screenshot of inappropriate content should be extremely careful. Violating one’s privacy has serious legal consequences, but even more so when the victim is a minor. Even if the perpetrator is a minor, this falls within the scope of “Child Pornography” offenses, which rightly carries severe penalties.
