Critics have expressed concern over Snapchat’s latest feature, Snap Maps, posing a risk to user safety. A significant number of the application’s users are teenagers. The new feature allows users to share their location on an interactive map in real time. Only mutual friends can see each other on the map.
“See what is happening, find your friends, and get inspired to go on an adventure!” is how Snapchat describes its latest feature. “You decide if you want to share your location with friends, or simply keep it to yourself with ghost mode.” For users who opt to share their location with friends on the app, their location gets updated every time they open the app.
The addition has raised doubts about privacy as well as risks from child predators and other criminals. “Users might not understand that Snap is posting your location on Snap Map every time you open the app,” The Verge reported. “That is so creepy!” the report quoted a user as saying. “I do not know why anyone would use that. I understand if you are at an event and checking in, but I would not want people to see where I am at all times.”
A Snapchat representative told The Verge, “The safety of our community is very important to us and we want to make sure that all Snapchatters, parents, and educators have accurate information about how the Snap Map works.”
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