Snapchat Map: New Snap Map Feature

As you might already know, one of the most popular social media apps to date, Snapchat, released a new feature called “Snap Map.” Though the feature is high tech, there are many privacy concerns that are arising due to this new update that allows users to see exactly where their Snapchat friends are at any given hour of the day.

Specifically, the new feature permits users to pinpoint where their friend’s exact locations are at any time. If you want your friends to see where your location always is, you can set it up through the Camera mode and then pinch to zoom in and out of the map. You can also click on the top right icon in order to share your location with friends.

Another feature of the Snapchat map is the “Ghost mode,” which is snapchat representative’s argument in opposition of the privacy concerns. By clicking on the “Ghost mode” option, snapchat user’s location can be turned off. Also, snapchat representatives are voicing that it is impossible to share your location with people that aren’t your friend.

However, the concerns are valid considering many users have friends on snapchat that aren’t actually their friends. Additionally, it will potentially be easy to simply forget to turn on the Ghost mode option.

One interesting and impressive feature that is on the Snap Map is the ability to see what events are happening around user’s favorite venues. For example, users can see what concerts and shows are happening by using this feature.

Clearly, the Snapchat map has some compelling facets to explore, however, there might be caveats due to the potential hazards attributed to privacy. It is ultimately to the user’s discretion to decide if this feature is unsafe or not  by the way they use, if their friends are really their friends, and to put on “ghost mode” when necessary.