SnapChat Now Warns You If Another App Saves Your Photos

Promises, promises. Snapchat's appeal is based largely on the premise that stuff happens, often late at night and after a few adult beverages or other substances have been ingested, excitement is high (literally and figuratively) and prudence is taking a break.

So unlike some other apps or social media we and everyone else could name, the snapchat snap is supposed to delete itself after a few minutes. Only there's this problem. Surprise? There are a bunch of third-party apps as the following article explains, which enable incoming users - the people they are being sent to - exactly the ones you dont want to have controlling them - to save them. Yeah, uh-oh.

So now SnapChat is going to warn you if that happens. You can then decide what to do about it.

This is significant less for the technology involved or for legal implications than for the fact there is evidently sufficient demand to make all this effort, hassle and expense worth SnapChat's and its investors' time.

What it suggests is that people would prefer to safeguard at least some aspects of what they perceive to be their privacy, assuming they can do so conveniently. It may also imply that there is a market for these sorts of protections - as Apple's and Google's recent announcements confirm - and that there is money to be made from them which may rival or exceed that of the transparency enabling devices. It will be very interesting to see if either economic model wins - or, as is more likely, if they reach some sort of rapprochement in a Cold War-ish, Mexican standoff-ish kind of way. JL

Jose Pagliery reports in CNN/Money:

The whole point of Snapchat is that photos have a self-destruct timer. But there's a false sense of privacy, because numerous third-party apps like SaveSnap, SnapGrab and SnapSpy offer users the ability to save incoming photos.
Starting this week, the photo-sharing app will warn you if another app on your phone is saving your pictures. Snapchatters using third-party apps will be forced to change their password. If they refuse, their accounts will be locked.

That matters, because the whole point of Snapchat is that photos have a self-destruct timer. This feature makes Snapchat a favorite for sexting -- sending nude images.
But there's a false sense of privacy, because numerous third-party apps like SaveSnap, SnapGrab and SnapSpy offer users the ability to save incoming photos.
This is why Snapchat isn't really private. The whole system has a massive hole. It's partly the fault of users for downloading the stuff, and Snapchat for taking so long to block them entirely.

 

Messages gone in 10 secs worth billions?

In the past, Snapchat has asked users not to use third-party apps that tap into the company's computer code -- but it hasn't shut them down the way Twitter has. Snapchat said it's asking Apple (AAPL, Tech30) and Google (GOOG) to block those apps one by one. But they're still around.
On Tuesday, the company issued a statement along with its new policy.
"Repeat offenders may have their accounts locked permanently," said Jill Hazelbaker, a Snapchat spokeswoman.
Keep in mind, though, your buddy can still take a photo of the message with another camera.