Snapchat Security News 2015: Reveals Collection of Data by U.S. Law Enforcers, Vows Tighter Security Features

Monica Cantilero Tuesday, April 07, 2015

The Snapchat logo appears on a mobile phone as a user prepares to use the social media app. | YOUTUBE

The messaging app Snapchat has revealed that it has often been contacted by law enforcement agencies in the U.S. to get certain information, taking a step similar to what other Silicon Valley giants like Google and Facebook have done, ABC News reported.

The four-year-old social media app said in its first ever transparency report that it received 375 requests from law enforcement from Nov. 1 last year until Feb. 28 this year.

The tech firm admitted that it has complied with 92 percent of such inquiries.

Snapchat also said it will launch a sophisticated slate of new security features to make sure that users' "silly photos and scantily clad selfies remain private and unable to be grabbed by third-party apps."

It said third-party apps will be completely shut down. Many Snapchat users have been using these apps to save photos that friends showed them with the intention of showing them the photos for only a few seconds.

Last year, a third-party app, Snapsaved, was hacked. It caused thousands of private photos and videos to be posted online. It's something Snapchat said it is working to make sure such incident will never happen again. The company said it is working to make it more difficult for third parties to write apps that can be used on Snapchat.

Snapchat's vice president for engineering Tim Sehn said the company has a "competitive advantage that we care that much about users' privacy and security."

"We care enough to delete their data. That is something that most companies don't do because that data is valuable. It costs us something to do that," Sehn said. "So it's definitely part of the ethos that has been there since the start."

Snapchat will also offer incentives to coders worldwide who will inform them about any potential vulnerabilities in the app.

ABC News interpreted Snapchat's move to launch its very first transparency report as some signifier of maturity, saying: "Snapchat is growing up, joining the ranks of its older tech giant predecessors when it comes to openness."