You have to enter your birth date to set up an account, but there's no age verification, so it's easy for kids under 13 to sign up. Common Sense Media rates Snapchat OK for teens 16 and up, mainly because of the exposure to age-inappropriate content and the marketing ploys, such as quizzes, that collect data.
That said, when used responsibly, Snapchat can be a positive outlet for older kids to explore their creativity and connect with friends. If you decide your kids are ready for an account, it's a good idea to have ongoing conversations about how they're using the platform and how it's making them feel.
Can Parents Monitor Snapchat? Yes, Snapchat can be monitored by the parents. Parents would not even need to collect their kid's phones to check their chats and phones to see their conversations and posts. Instead, they can monitor it from their phone or PC.
In essence, SnapKidz is just a photo and drawing app for kids, which lacks Snapchat's main feature: sending messages. The kid-friendly option is currently only available as part of an update to the iOS app, but may roll out to Android in the future.
You have to enter your birth date to set up an account, but there's no age verification, so it's easy for kids under 13 to sign up. Common Sense Media rates Snapchat OK for teens 16 and up, mainly because of the exposure to age-inappropriate content and the marketing ploys, such as quizzes, that collect data.
What is Snapchat's minimum age? Like many other social networks, the minimum age to use Snapchat is 13 years old.
Snaps and Chats, including Voice and Video Chats, between you and your friends are private — we don't scan their content to create profiles or show you ads. This means we typically don't know what you're saying or Snapping unless you ask us to (for example, if you opt-in to Voice Chat transcripts).
How Secure Is Snapchat? Snapchat uses end-to-end encryption on photos shared between its users. Text messages and other messages sent on Snapchat aren't protected by the same encryption.
After talking about the pros and cons safety features of the two popular social media apps, we can easily conclude that: Yes, Snapchat is safer than Instagram. But this does not mean that inappropriate content can not make its way into a users' Snaps.
Similarly, parents cannot see the content that their teen is sending or receiving on Snapchat. They can only view whom their child has communicated with in the past seven days. Snapchat is popular with young people, partially because messages on the platform disappear within 24 hours.
Does Snapchat Offer Parental Controls? Technically, Snapchat does not offer built-in “parental controls” features, but they do offer privacy settings that you should utilize to give your child control over who can see their content and who can contact them.
Then, teens must accept their parent's request for monitoring on their end in the app. If they do, parents can see a list of their teens' Snapchat friends, who they have talked to in the last week and report any suspicious or abusive accounts if necessary.
Although the app can be fun, sometimes parents feel like it is dangerous or that you are too young to use it. You can try to convince your parents to let you have Snapchat by asking them if you can download the app politely and coming up with compromises so that they feel more comfortable about you having it.
Many assume their messages are secure and inaccessible without consent. But that's far from reality because Snapchat private messages aren't safe. Further, Snapchat forbids minors to engage in sexting according to its community guidelines.
I hate to tell you this, but there is no such thing as safe sexting. Using Snapchat to send scandalous selfies is like using the pull-out method; it's not 100% effective at preventing long-term consequences. Here's a few reasons to think thrice before sending off a sexy snap using the app.
Sending Explicit Snaps or Messages
Snapchat prohibits accounts that promote or distribute pornographic content. Asking anyone under the age of 18 to send explicit imagery or chats is a worse offense. Aside from risking a permanent ban, Snapchat will also report you to relevant authorities.
But can people see your memories on Snapchat? Good news: Only the user with access to a given account can see the account's Memories. Translation: Not just anyone can see your camera roll on Snapchat, and your friends can't search your Snapchat account and find what you've saved to your Memories.
Yesterday, Snapchat took to its blog to clarify that no, your private messages and pics aren't going to show up publicly in any advertisements—your cruel friends might screenshot them and put you on blast, but that risk remains the same as it always has.
Our ability to disclose Snapchat account records is generally governed by the Stored Communications Act, 18 U.S.C. § 2701, et seq. The SCA mandates that we disclose certain Snapchat account records only in response to specific types of legal process, including subpoenas, court orders, and search warrants.
Snapchat is primarily used for creating multimedia messages referred to as "snaps"; snaps can consist of a photo or a short video, and can be edited to include filters and effects, text captions, and drawings.
Now, the question- which is safer, Snapchat or Instagram, can be confidently answered that Snapchat is much more secure and private for texting.