Snapchat Improves Parental Control

Snapchat finally introduces the recently announced parental control features. Now the social media platform doesn’t allow adults to add teenage users to their lists of friends if they haven’t met in real life. But what are the reasons for this change? 

Security First 

After the update, adults can’t add teenagers ages 13-17 years old to their lists of friends via the Quick Add section to ensure that adults don’t try to connect with teenagers they don’t really know. The reason for the update is not a secret too. Snapchat says that the change is called to fight drug dealers who use Snapchat as a source of new buyers, including adults and teenagers. 

 

Currently, the AI-driven system intercepts 88% of drug-dealing accounts and automatically bans them from interacting with any users. The social media platform also cooperates with government departments to implement law enforcement when necessary. The law enforcement operations team has been expanded by 74% to oppose the problem even more seriously. 

More to Come

According to Snapchat, more parental control features are to be added soon. The platform plans to make it easier for parents to supervise the social media activities of their children. The company hired Global Head of Platform Safety, Jacqueline Beauchere, who worked in Microsoft’s online safety department for 20 years. Beauchere will help Snapchat to solve the safety issues related to location sharing, harmful content, and drug dealing. The platform will not only work towards solving these problems but also towards educating the user base on how to avoid scammers, dealers, and other criminals. 

Is It Effective?

What do you think about the latest Snapchat initiatives in the security sector? Will they bring enough safety to teenage users of the platform? What would you offer Snapchat to change? Let’s discuss it in the comments, and don’t forget to share this post on social media.