INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Image copyrightGetty ImagesImage caption
Snapchat has faced criticism over a feature known as streaks, which are used to
maintain friendships
The firm behind instant messaging app Snapchat has told MPs it may consider changes to its friendship
streaks, which have been criticised for being potentially addictive.Streaks are used as a mark of a close friendship within the Snapchat app
It involves friends exchanging messages but each response must arrive within 24 hours
Some Snap users juggle dozens, or even hundreds, simultaneously.Snap executives told British MPs they would "revisit" the feature.MPs from
the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport select committee are exploring the addictive nature of social and gaming platforms.Streaks are created
within Snapchat if two users have exchanged messages for more than three days in a row
The longer they continue, the greater the streak.Some youngsters ask friends to sign into their accounts if they can't, in order to maintain
their total.Age verificationImage copyrightGetty ImagesImage caption
Snapchat is keen to distance itself from other
social media, describing itself as a camera company
Snapchat's senior director of public policy, Stephen Collins, and Will
Scougal, Snap's creative strategy director, downplayed their significance, saying they were part of a suite of features introduced in 2015
and not an integral part of the app.But committee chairman Damian Collins compared streaks to likes on Facebook and re-tweets on Twitter
"It seems that the value of a relationship could be measured in the length of a streak," he said, asking whether parents who felt that they
were putting "undue pressure" on their children could remove them.No, said the executives, but both promised to "take the thoughts of the
committee on board"."Streaks were meant to be a fun thing
We have reduced them in size by 30%, in line with recommendations from the Children's Commission, but we are always looking at whether we
should sunset a particular feature and we will revisit it," said Snap's Stephen Collins.The firm also faced tough questions about how it
makes sure that children under the age of 13 are not joining the platform.One MP said he had joined the app easily despite supplying a date
of birth that indicated he was 12 years old.Mr Collins acknowledged that it was "not possible to keep under-13s off any platform" because
they can easily get around parental controls."We need a robust age verification system and we are working with the Home Office on this," he
told MPs.In response to the hearing, Tony Stower, head of child safety online at charity the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty
of Children (NSPCC) said: "We know that 18% of eight to 11 year olds have a social media account, and yet social networks still fail to
build child safety measures into their platforms from the start
Dealing with it after harm has taken place is simply too late
"It is evident that tech firms will not do enough if left to their own devices, and so it is vital the government holds its nerve and brings
in new laws and an independent regulator to police the Wild West Web and force social networks to introduce a range of protections to keep
their young users safe."The firm was also asked about a phenomenon of "Snapchat dysmorphia" in which filters and lenses alter body and
facial features.The executives were asked if they felt they were part of a growing conversation about whether such systems were encouraging
young girls to have body issues and even depression.They said the filters were "a fun way" of overlaying reality and that "more research was
needed across the whole industry" on the societal effects of beauty apps and filters.Unreleased data Image copyrightEssex PoliceImage
caption
Surrey schoolboy Breck Bednar met his killer, Lewis Daynes, online, before travelling to Essex to meet up with
him
Snapchat's involvement in the high-profile and tragic case of Breck Bednar, a 14-year-old boy who was murdered by Lewis
Daynes after making friends with him on a gaming website, was also under scrutiny
Snapchat has faced media criticism for failing to provide data to police investigating claims that the murdered boy's family received
messages via the platform which graphically recounted the killing.The messaging firm said it would take a year for police to get this data
because the firm is based in the US and therefore bound by an agreement known as the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty.Mr Collins told the
committee that Snap had been asked by Kent police about its policies but had never formally been asked to release any data.It said it had
spoken to Breck's family about how to report and block content and how to preserve data for any future police investigation
It also said it had advised them on resetting their accounts and not accepting friendship requests from people they did not know.Asked
whether Snap could have made an exception and given police the relevant data had they asked, Mr Collins said he would have to check with
