A Parent’s Guide
to Snapchat

What’s inside?

?
Snapchat’s
Features

Common
FAQ’s

Safety & Wellness
Resources

Conversation
Starters

1

A Letter From Parents
Who Work at Snap Inc.
Dear Parent,Your teenager created a Snapchat account.
Now what? You’re skeptical. Why would yourteen want to use an app where much of theircontent deletes by default? Social platforms areconstantly evolving, and we understand it canbe hard to keep up. It’s natural to have questions
and concerns, and we hope that you find thisguide helpful in learning about Snapchat andbecoming a resource to educate and empower
your teen.
We recognize that you want to ensure that yourteen is well protected and informed while using

our app. Our goal is to provide a space for teens
to express their creativity and authentic selves.
Snapchat is different from traditional social
media as the app was created as a fun way tokeep in touch with close friends, not strangers.

Why does my teenwant to use an app
where much of theircontent deletes bydefault?

Unlike other platforms, we don’t allow publiccomments, and our default settings mean a
Snapchatter can only receive messages frompeople who they’ve added as a Friend.
Beyond talking to friends, Snapchat is great
for families to stay connected. Snapchat helps
you use your creativity to communicate in a fun
and casual way! It’s a place to just have fun witheach other (no worrying about to-do lists orreminders to wash the dishes). Instead, you geta chance to send silly pictures and live in the
moment (without clogging your camera roll!).
Use Snapchat to Snap pictures of your family
pet while your teen is at school, or add ourLenses to get a laugh out of your teen!
We understand that any app that facilitatescommunication has the potential to be abused,which is why we have -- and will continue to-- focus a lot of time, resources and energy on
the safety of our platform. With extensive in-app
reporting, our community guidelines, and wide

range of active safety partners, we let our teensknow that their safety is our priority.
We created this parent’s guide to provide youwith additional information that empowers you
and your family to safely express yourselves,
live in the moment, learn about the world, andhave fun together. We hope you find it helpful
as you continue to have open and honest
conversations with your teen about what they
are doing online.
Remember, we’re here for you and your teen!
- The Parents who work at Snap Inc.

2

Table of Contents

3

What isSnapchat?

4

CommonFAQs

6Top
Features7

Our Privacy
Principles

8

Helpful
Safety Tips

9

WellnessResources

10

How to Talk to
your Teen About
Snapchat3

Snapchat 101

What is Snapchat?

As a parent or educator, you mightknow Snapchat as the messaging andcamera app that’s one of the only ways
teens communicate with their friends
these days. From the very beginning,
we’ve focused on helping real friends
connect when they’re apart and to feel
comfortable expressing themselves in
the moment. Snapchat was created asa tool to make people feel comfortable
expressing themselves with their camera.
Snapchat is deliberately built differently
than traditional social media, in ways thatmake it much safer for our community.
We encourage parents and teens to haveregular conversations about appropriate
use of Snapchat and other platforms
which is why we put together this guide.

4

Common FAQs
With our camera, we’ve created a way for people toexpress themselves using our creative tools to say somuch more in a single Snap than the limitations of atext message. On Snapchat, you’re free to be you withthe people you care about the most. Here are someanswers to your most common questions:

Just tap on the camera icon to take a photo or hold totake a video. You can send pictures or videos, called“Snaps,” to friends, which are not designed to facilitate
easy messaging from strangers. When you first createan account, by default, you cannot receive a message
from someone you have not added as a friend.

1 How does the app work?
After you’ve signed-up for an account and createdyour Bitmoji, it’s time to start exploring! Snapchat has
5 tabs (from left to right): Map, Chat, Camera, Stories &Discover. Snapchat opens to the Camera.

Express
Yourself!

2 Tell me more about Snaps?

3 What are Snap’s Safety Standards?

Snaps are made for quick and easy communication,
just like real life conversations! That’s
why when you send a Snap to afriend, the Snap deletes by default,
like words spoken aloud. We believe
this drives the level of authentic
24HR
conversation that we see across
Snapchat every day.

All ​users​on Snapchat must comply with Snap’s ​Termsof Service​and ​Community Guidelines​, which prohibit
hate speech, discrimination, misinformation, bullying,harassment, violent content, andmuch more. Snap has dedicatedteams who create and enforce
these policies.

Remember, even though the Snaps
are designed to delete by default, a friend can still
grab a screenshot, record the screen, or capture
it with another device.

To learn more on how we protect
our users, check out our Privacy
Center.

4 Is there an age requirement to createan account?

Yes. No one under 13 is allowed to create an accountor use Snapchat and we don’t direct our services toanyone under 13. If you have a child under 13 using
Snapchat, please reach out to us with your child’susername and verification of your relationship.
You’re in control of who you share things with, how
you share them, and how long they can be viewed
on Snapchat.

5

on Snapchat?

Snapchat is deliberately built differently than traditionalsocial media—in ways that make it much safer forour community. Snapchat is a place to connect andcommunicate with friends and loved ones, but it’s
important to know how to stay safe. We recommend
checking out our Safety Center to learn more about
Our Policies, Our Team, and information for Parents
and Educators. Some helpful tips for your teen include:
creating a strong password, verifying their email andmobile number, only accepting friend requests frompeople that they know in real life, and reading up on
our Community Guidelines so they can try to help theirfriends to follow them too!

Only accept friend
requests frompeople you know
in real life.

6 How do I report a Safety Concern?
We make it easy for our community to get in touch via
in-app reports and off-platform feedback to identify
inappropriate users and content. Users can report any
content through in-app reporting, our support portal,
and the Snapchat Support Twitter account. We takeaction in accordance with our Community Guidelines
and aggregate feedback to improve Snapchat.
Note: If you feel someone is in immediate danger,
contact your local law enforcement agency right away.

“

We focus on creating
effective Guidelines,
protecting our Snapchattersand providing a safe, funenvironment for creativity
and self expression. If yourteen ever experiences asafety concern, they should
always report it to us.

“

5 How can I help keep my teen stay safe

6

How to use Snapchat

Top Features

To help you navigate the app, check out some
Snapchat fundamentals below. For a full list of features,check out our Snap Glossary on Page 27.
First thing first: There’s more to Snapchat then justsending photo and video messages. The app has 5tabs (from left to right): Snap Map, Chat, Camera,
Stories & Discover.

Snap Map:
Snap Map connects our community to their bestfriends and to different places around the world. As
with all our products, the Snap Map was designedwith privacy top of mind, and location-sharing is off bydefault for all users. When a Snapchatter opens Snap
Map for the first time, they’re prompted to choose
who they’d like to share theirlocation with-- whether that be
all their friends, a customized
few, or no one (Ghost Mode).
Places on the Snap Map allows
for Snapchatters to view businesshours and reviews, make take-out
and delivery orders.

Chat:
From the very beginning, we’ve focusedon helping real friends connect whenthey’re apart, and to feel comfortable
expressing themselves in the moment.
Snapchat allows for video, photo,audio, and text chats, as well as phone
and video calls. Messages are deleted
by default, and a user cannot receive
a one-on-one chat from someone they
aren’t already friends with.

Camera:Snapchat automatically opens to the Camera. This
is where you can take Snaps — which are videos orphotos. After a Snap is created, it can be layered withcreative tools, like Filters, texts, stickers, attachments
and more. A Snap can be:
Sent in a Chat
Saved to Memories
Added to My Story or create a 		Private Story or Custom Story
DeletedFor additional information on when Snapchat deletes
Snaps and Chats, please visit our support article here.
Check out Page 27 for more on these terms!

Stories:This is where Snapchatters can view Stories fromtheir Friends, Creators, and the broader Snapchat
community! It’s also where you can view and watch
subscriptions from Discover and “For You” option.

Discover:This is a dedicated spacefor Snapchat’s originalshows and stories fromtrusted publishers
ranging from national
news outlets (The WallStreet Journal, Wired,
National Geographic)
to entertainment,
sports, and more. Our“Happening Now” notification shows Snapchattersa personalized stream of news, weather and otherupdates.

7

Privacy on Snapchat

Our Privacy Principles

At Snap, we make your privacy a priority.
We know your trust is earned every time you
use Snapchat, or any of our other products— that’s why we treat your informationdifferently than most other tech companies.
Even though our products are constantly
evolving, our privacy principles remainunchanged:
We communicate honestly and openly
You choose how to express yourself
We design with privacy in mind
You control your information
To learn more on how we make your privacy
a top priority, check out our Privacy Center,
where you will find more details on our
privacy principles, our privacy policy andif you are looking for a summary of the key
issues, please review Your Privacy, Explained.

8

Staying Safe on Snapchat

Helpful Safety Tips

Snapchat is a place to connect and communicate withfriends and loved ones, but it’s also important to know
how to stay safe. We recommend checking out our
Safety Center to learn more about Our Policies, Our
Team, and information for Parents and Educators. Keepin mind, Snapchat is for ages 13+.
We also offer in-app support for Snapchatters who may
be experiencing a mental health or emotional crisis, or
who may be curious to learn more about these issues
and how they can help friends dealing with them. Our
Here For You tool provides safety resources developedwith experts when Snapchatters search for certain
topics, including those related to anxiety, depression,stress, grief, suicidal thoughts, and bullying.
Here are some tips to stay safe on Snapchat! 👻

1 Choose a Strong Password: Select apassword that’s at least 8 characters long, anddon’t include personal information, like your name,username, phone number, or birthday. Include a mix of
numbers, symbols, and capital and lowercase letters inyour password. Don’t share your password with others,
and don’t use the same password for other apps
or websites.

2 Verify Your Email and Mobile Number:
Verify that the email address and mobile number
associated with your account are accurate in
Snapchat settings.

4 Keep it Between Friends: Snapchat wasmade for keeping in touch with your close friends.
We recommend that you only friend or accept friend
requests from people that you know in real life. Remind
your teens that it’s not safe to meet up with a person
they meet online!

5 Check Your Privacy Settings: Choose who
can send you Snaps, view your Stories, or see yourlocation on Snap Map in your settings. By default,
only your Friends can contact you directly orview your Story.

6 Customize Your Location on the Map:

You can choose to share your location with all yourfriends you’ve added back, just a group of selectfriends, or you can even turn on Ghost Mode when you
want to go off the grid. The Snap Map only updates
your location when you’re using the app, and only
shares your location with the people you select toshare it with!

7 Change Who Can View My Story: The

default privacy setting is that only Snapchatters you’ve

3 Set up Two-Factor Authentication: This is added can view your Story. The privacy settings you
an optional security feature to verify that it’s really you
when you log into your Snapchat account! This makes
your account more secure. Learn more here.

have when you post a Snap to your Story will remain
for that Snap, even if you change the settings later.

8 Report Abuse on Snapchat: You can always
report abuse on Snapchat, including harassment,
bullying, or any other safety concern. If someone ismaking you uncomfortable, you can also block that
Snapchatter and leave any group chat. To report, press
and hold on a Snap or Story and select the
icon.

🏳

9 Difference Between Removing andBlocking Friends: When you remove someone

from your Friends list, they won’t be able to view any ofyour private Stories, but they’ll still be able to view any
content you have set to public. Depending on
your privacy settings, they may also still be able toChat or Snap you. When you block a friend, they won’t
be able to view your Story, send you Snaps, or send
you Chats.

9

Keeping You in Mind

Wellness Resources

Snap is deeply committed to the safety and wellbeingof its community. We employ teams, technologies,
policies, and partnerships to keep our Snapchatterssafe, healthy, and informed.
We work with industry experts and non-governmental
agencies to provide resources and support to
Snapchatters in need. For a full list of our Safety
Partners, visit our Safety Partners.
Snapchat provides resources and wellbeing features
in-app to help support your teens, whether they are
seeking emotional support or simply just want to chat!
Our wellbeing features are designed to educate andempower members of the Snapchat community tosupport friends who may be experiencing their own
struggle with mental health!

Crisis Text Line: We partner with Crisis Text Line,

which allows Snapchatters who live in the US to chatwith a live, trained crisis counselor for free and isavailable 24/7. Just text KIND to 741741, or search Crisis
Text Line in-app! If you are outside the US, check out
our Safety Resources for more information.

Headspace Mini: Headspaceand Snap are partnering to give
Snapchatters access to guided
meditations and mindfulness
practices, directly in-app. Throughthe Headspace Mini, Snapchatterswill be empowered to do
meditation exercises with friends
and send encouraging messages
to positively boost friends in need.
Note, this feature is only available
in select countries.

Here For You: A tool in Search that houses

localized resources and content from professional nonprofit organizations that’s shown when people typein words associated with being in crisis. The Search
topics include depression, anxiety, grieving, bullying,
body positivity, LGBTQ mental health, and more.

In-App Reporting: Our in-app reporting tool allow

Snapchatters to anonymously alert us when they worry
their friends are at risk for self-harm. We also shareresources to both the person alerting Snap to thesituation and the person receiving the in-app support
to a Support Site page that has self-harm and crisis
hotlines resources in over 20 countries and languages.

In 2017 we launched in-app crisis resources formembers of our community. This intervention appears
as a message from Snapchat Support.
Our Law Enforcement Operations team will proactively
reach out to law enforcement when we believe, ingood faith, an imminent threat to life exists. Snapchat
is not a professional mental health intervention
resource. If a friend or loved one is in danger, utilize
emergency services such as, the Suicide Prevention
Hotline, Crisis Textline, or call 911.

Safety Snapshot Discover Channel:

Encourage your teen to subscribe to Safety Snapshot,
which is a Discover show focused on educating
Snapchatters about digital security and importantways to keep your Snapchat account secure! Note, thischannel is only available in select countries.

Resource Page: Check out our Safety Center, fora full list of safety partners and resources for you andyour teen!
Tap and holdin-app to scan

10

How to Talk to Your Teens

Conversation Starters

We know it’s important to be able to communicate
with your teen about using Snapchat. That’s why wepartnered with experts from MindUP, Crisis Text Line,and Snap Parents to come up with some conversation
starters on how to connect with your teen over Snap,
recognize potential concerning behavior, and how topractice wellness within the app!

Get Involved
Creating your own Snapchat account can help you
understand the app and better connect with your teen.
Pro Tip: Have your teen teach you about using your
new Snapchat!

Here are some fun questions to ask to get
the conversation flowing:
Can I see what your Bitmoji looks like?
Do you want to create a family private story or 		group chat for us?
What filter do you use the most?
Which Discover show is your favorite? Which 		ones will I like?
How do best friends on Snapchat work?
Who is your longest Snapstreak?
Can I save a Snap? Where does it go if I save it?
How do I go into Ghost Mode on the Snap Map?
What’s your favorite tab of the app?

How can I make sure only my Friends are seeing 		what I post?
What’s your favorite Snap Game?

Recognizing a Concern:
It’s important to know what behaviors you should
keep an eye out for in your teen. These behaviors
might indicate that your teen is having trouble online
and might need some extra support from you, acounselor, or another adult. Are you noticing any of
the following?

If you are, make sure to talk to your teen andpotentially seek help from a professional or checkout our Here For You tool. For any urgent momentsof crisis, be sure they know that Crisis Text Lineis available 24/7 by texting KIND to 741741. We’ve
partnered directly with them to ensure the Snapchat
community has free, confidential support from theirtrained Crisis Counselors.
2:23
Cancelanxiety
Here For You
Here For You

Whatever you’re going through, we’re here for you.

Difference in personality (increased anxiety, fear, 		or anger)
Avoiding conversations about technology
Avoiding using their phone or laptop
Withdrawing from friends and family
Change in school behavior (lower grades, poor 		
attendance, falling asleep in class)Self-harming ideations

Feeling down?
Here For You · February 7, 2020

Headspace

MINI

Breathe. Relax. Check in on friends.

Practicing Wellness:
Snapchat’s designed so that people can only see
the things you want to share, for as long as you want
to share them. We also develop new products andfeatures using our safety-by-design approach andhelping our community access preventative wellbeing
tools and resources when they or their friends areexperiencing a mental health crisis.

11

Do you ever use Headspace to meditate?
Research has found meditation, or practicing
mindful awareness, can reduce stress andimprove well-being
If you needed to report somebody’s Snapchat, do
you know how to?
Do you watch the Safety Snapshot Discover
Channel dedicated towards safety?
Are you subscribed to Here For You? This canbe found by searching “Here For You” into yoursearch bar on Snapchat
Do you feel like you have somebody to talk to if
something is bothering you on Snapchat?
Do you know what resources are available tosupport you on Snapchat?
How long do you spend in-app?
Do you ever feel overwhelmed when using theapp? What do you do after feeling this?

“After talking with your teen:

We all have the ability
to bring more joy andwellness to our lives by
exercising positive mental
habits such as practicing
mindful awareness,
expressing gratitude, andacting with kindness.
- Molly Stewart Lawlor, PhD“

Here are some ways to check in withyour teen:

Now that you and your teen are pros at communicating
about Snapchat, it’s a good idea to set someagreements for the future and to make sure you arecontinually having these conversations! Even creatinga social media contract can help keep privacy and trust
on both sides. By making these promises, it can help tofacilitate trust between both parties.
Here are some conversations starters for fostering
healthy communication with your teen and supporting
their development of healthy screen and social media
habits:Create talking rituals; set aside time for talking andlistening like over family meals
Involve your teen in conversation, asking
questions like, “what is your opinion on this?” andresponding with openness to their ideas
Learn how to really listen by eliminating
distractions and maintaining eye contact

Agree together on a time block throughout each
day that includes a social media or phone “break”
Talk openly about online risks and concerns,
providing them with practical things they
can do to deal with risks online, like blocking
and reporting
Here are some key guidelines to help your teen staysafe and well on social media:
Importance of keeping social posts to your close
circle — only accepting friend requests frompeople you really know
Always ask yourself: WWGS? (what wouldGrandma say) before you post!
Don’t be a bystander — if you see something thatmakes you uncomfortable, report it!
Always act within the community guidelinesof kindness

Snapchat Glossary(A-Z)

Camera: Where you send your friends Snaps, which
are photos or videos!

Chat: Send video, phone, or text chats with yourreal friends.

Creative Tools: After you create a Snap, you can
add stickers, text, doodles and more.

Custom Story: Choose friends for your Custom
Story! Anyone who joins will be able to add to thisStory and see other members.

Discover: Watch premium news & entertainment,
including Snap Original’s and mainstream media.

Filters: Swipe right on a Snap, and Filter options willappear to add color effects, show venue info, feature
your Bitmoji, show what you’re doing, and more.

Games and Snap Minis: Games are a fun way tohang out with your friends on Snapchat! Snap Minis are
bite-sized utilities tailor-made for friends, like planninga movie night or making a deck of flashcards.

12

My Eyes Only: This feature is found in Memories

and allows for a Snapchatter to move Snaps andStories saved in their Memories to their My Eyes Only
tab —which requires a passcode to view.

My Story: A series of Snaps that play in

Our Story: A collection of Snaps submitted fromSnap Stars: Creators (such as influencers andLenses: Tap on a face to launch the Lens carousel.

Private Story: Private Stories allow Snapchatters to

Location Services: Snapchat uses your location

for features like Filters, Search, Snap Map, Advertisingand more. If enabled, your location will update while
you have Snapchat open.

Memories: A Snapchatter’s personal collection ofSnaps and Stories that are saved to your Memories.

Snap Map: See what’s happening, find your friends,

chronological order that friends can view for 24 hours.
You can choose the option to share to Everyone, My
Friends, or a Customized list of people.

your location on the Snap Map!

Lenses add 3D effects, objects, characters, andtransformations to your Snaps.

that you can scan with Snapchat to do different things,
like add new friends or unlock Filters and Lenses.

and get inspired to go on an adventure with this tab.
Location-sharing is off by default -- you decide if you
want to share your location with friends, or simply keep
it to yourself with Ghost Mode.

different Snapchatters throughout the community.
Snaps featured on Our Story are public content thatcan be shown on Snap Maps and even off platform.

Ghost Mode: When enabled, your friends can’t see

Snapcode: A Snapcode is special kind of image

create a Story that is only shared with a chosen selectamount of Friends.

Quick Add: Friend recommendations in Quick Add
are based on a few factors, like who you’re alreadyfriends with and who you subscribe to.

Search: Typing in Search will show you different

things, so you can find what’s most relevant to you; likefinding friends or checking out our Here For You tool.

celebrities) who have a wide audience will have a gold
star. You can subscribe to these Creators.

Stories: Watch Stories from Friends, Creators, andthe Snapchat community!

Streaks: Typically represented by a 🔥 emoji next toyour Friend’s name in the Chats screen is a tally of how
many days the streak (ie. Snaps exchanged with eachother) has lasted. Snap Streaks are meant to be a fun,light-hearted way to recognize who you’re Snappingwith most!

Snap Inc.

November 2020 Edition