Snapchat secrets

Snapchat. In today’s world, it is an expected part of teenage social life. According to Pew Research Center, Snapchat ranks just below YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok in popularity among teens. However, it is Snapchat’s unique design that sets it apart, making it particularly dangerous for young users.

Snapchat is a messaging app owned by Snap Inc. and first released in the summer of 2011 under the name “Picaboo” and then rebranded to “Snapchat” shortly after. What makes Snapchat different from other contemporary messaging apps is that messages (called “Snaps”) are temporary and casual, more like a passing hallway conversation than a social media post or email thread.

According to Snapchat’s website, the app allows people “to share the moment, in the moment.” How quickly the Snap disappears depends on when it is viewed, if it is saved, or if it is part of a group conversation. Snap Inc. reassures users on its support page that opened or expired posts usually cannot be retrieved from Snapchat’s servers.

Law enforcement officials say this design plays directly into how online crimes against children occur. Corporal Rachel Clock of the Lee County Sheriff’s Department in Northeast Mississippi explained that most online offenses involving children are centered on sexual exploitation.

“Most of what we see with online crimes directed at children is exploitation,” Clock said. “We see predators asking children to send them inappropriate photos or meeting up with children for sexual activity. Those are the two usual cases that we deal with, all taking place on social media while the child is at home.”

A false sense of safety

This self-deleting feature feels safe to young users. If a teen sends an embarrassing Snap, they believe it quickly goes away. There is no “paper trail” for conversations they want to keep hidden. They think it promises a space where they can say whatever they want to whomever they want without shouldering responsibility or being exposed. But this is simply not true. According to Clock, this sense of safety is precisely what emboldens predators.

“They feel safe sending and requesting these messages because they believe it goes away,” she said. “But just because they can’t see it on their screen doesn’t mean it goes away. Our phones are, after all, computers. Just like your desktop computer or your laptop retains all the information you access, so does your phone. That information never goes away. It never disappears. So, during an investigation, nine times out of ten, we’re able to uncover what they feel has been deleted and gone forever.”

Unfortunately, this misplaced trust in Snapchat’s temporary design has had dire consequences.

Snap Inc. is the focus of a growing number of lawsuits and state actions claiming that the app’s features expose young users to preventable harm. In 2024, the New Mexico Department of Justice (NMDOJ) joined other states (including Florida and Utah) in taking action against Snap Inc. Texas also filed suit in February 2026.

New Mexico’s investigation into Snapchat unearthed a dark reality that paralleled Clock’s experience, finding that it is a major platform for sextortion, a crime in which predators coerce social media users (often minors) into sending explicit images of themselves; then they threaten to share those images unless they receive payment of some kind. An undercover investigation by the NMDOJ exposed a network of websites sharing sexual images from Snapchat; investigators also found Snapchat users openly selling sexually explicit images of minors through their accounts. They set up a decoy account posing as a 14-year-old female, which they used to interact with users who were attempting to lure “her” into sharing explicit content.

Snapchat has some protective guardrails in place for young users, including a parental hub called Family Center that lets parents view the accounts their children have been in contact with. However, the effectiveness of these protections may be underwhelming for parents and guardians, as the Family Center does not show the messages a child has sent or received.

Apparently, Snapchat puts a high value on user secrecy.

A real death toll

The threat of sexual predators may be the most obvious danger of a platform like Snapchat, but unfortunately, that is not where it ends. The perceived temporary nature of posts and the environment of promised secrecy have also made Snapchat a storefront for illegal substances. In June 2022, the United States Drug Enforcement Administration described a case in Virginia in which a drug dealer pleaded guilty to distributing a fatal dose of fentanyl that resulted in the death of a 16-year-old. The sale was arranged via Snapchat, and it was not an isolated incident.

As of December 2025, Snapchat faces intense legal issues over its role in the sale of fentanyl to minors. U.S. lawmakers have introduced the Cooper Davis and Devin Norring Act, named in memory of two teenagers who died after taking pills containing lethal doses of fentanyl. The pills were purchased via Snapchat.

At least 63 families nationwide have filed suits against Snap Inc. because of the illegal drug sales facilitated on its platform. In these cases, the victims ranged in age from 14 to 22. Among these victims, there are only two survivors.

An addictive fuel

A more subtle form of addiction is found in Snapchat’s “Streak” feature. Snapchat Streaks show how many consecutive days two users have exchanged Snaps on the platform. A Streak begins when users send Snaps to each other for three consecutive days. Once the Streak is established, a fire emoji appears next to their usernames, along with a number indicating how many days the Streak has lasted. To maintain a Streak, both users must send at least one Snap to each other every 24 hours.

According to research published in September 2023 by Joris Van Ouytsel, associate professor at Arizona State University (ASU), and Christina van Essen, ASU graduate, participating in Snapchat Streaks is linked to problematic smartphone use, fear of missing out (FOMO), and reduced self-control on social media.

“When adolescents can continuously monitor the whereabouts and social engagement of their peers,” the research stated, “they may be more likely to engage in a constant social comparison between themselves and their peers that can lead to significant stressors. … Indeed, as Streaks reveal the frequency of interactions, adolescents can use them to see who their friends are interacting with the most. This visibility may result in feelings of friendship, jealousy, or annoyance within the peer group.”

The first line of defense

So, what is the best way to protect children from the dangers of Snapchat?

Clock said parents should not rely on built-in platform tools alone for protecting their children online.

“I strongly recommend using a parental control app,” she said, referencing apps like Bark or Aura. “These can be installed on phones, allowing parents to monitor everything happening on their child’s device.”

She explained that these tools can require parental approval before apps are installed.

“If a child wants to add an app like Snapchat but their parent disapproves, the parent can simply deny access,” Clock explained.

She also emphasized the importance of limiting screen time and supervising internet access for younger children whenever possible.