EnlargeSnapchat CEO Evan Spiegel in Los Angeles. (Credit: AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)Around 200,000 photos plus video messages sent via Snapchat were reportedly hacked and released on the site 4chan, on Thursday. Users of 4chan are calling the event the “Snappening.” 4chan is notably where the hacked nude photos of celebrities were posted in late August.
Snapchat is an app that allows users to send ephemeral messages — photo or video — which disappear after up to 10 seconds. Many have deemed it a “sexting” app, as it can be used to send racy photos with the idea that they’ll soon vanish. It has been noted that most people sent photos of cats along with selfies. (However, users on the receiving end can take a screenshot, which senders are notified about. Also, there are third party apps that allow snapchat users to store photos without senders knowing.)
Reports state that Snapchat itself was not hacked, but rather one of these third-party apps, which allows users to save photos. This massive breach of privacy and security released 200,000 photos, which were collected over years, and according to Business Insider this could include racy photos from underage users. If there are nude photos, this sick breach of privacy would also be considered child pornography, and those who have distributed the photos or are in possession of the photos could face jail-time.
“Snapchatters were victimized by their use of third-party apps to send and receive Snaps, a practice that we expressly prohibit in our Terms of Use precisely because they compromise our users’ security,” a Snapchat spokeswoman wrote to the Huffington Post. She stated that Snapchat warns users not to utilize third-party apps, because it could compromise privacy.
This entire event — happening on the heals of the release of celebrity nude photos — is truly abominable. It displays a complete lack of empathy, a disregard for privacy and makes it clear that hackers (and 4chan users) have no respect or understanding of consent.
No comments:
Post a Comment