Viewpoint: Snapchat Is A Dangerous Platform

Students of all ages have been using Snapchat to bully others, since its launch in 2011.

Snapchat lets users take photos and videos that last for a certain amount of seconds, and includes image-modifying filters. But unfortunately, there are students across the country who film and photograph their peers to make fun of them.

The bullying predecessor, YikYak, was a place for students to share their opinion anonymously – meaning they could spread hate without anyone knowing. Although not totally anonymous, Snapchat offers the same satisfaction where students can share their hateful opinions with one another.

The negative effects of Snapchat use are made exponentially worse by the ability to save and screenshot pictures — abusers of the platform tend to publish these snapshots on other social media, namely Facebook and Twitter.

Snapchat also encourages bullies to stalk and follow their victims. There have been complaints from various college campuses that Snapchat users abuse the platform by sending inappropriate messages and isolating “unpopular” students. College students are not as likely to report cyberbullying as their younger counterparts, leaving this issue grossly overlooked.

Despite the Snapchat feature that causes messages to disappear, users seem to forget that what goes on the internet, stays on the internet…even if it’s deleted.

The next time you post something to Snapchat, remember to proceed with caution. You could hurt someone.