Skip to main content

Snapchat blocks access to all third-party apps in bid to improve security

snapchat blocks access to all third party apps in bid improve security
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Snapchat suffered a nasty surprise back in October when a third-party app that archived images and videos posted to the ephemeral messaging app suffered a security breach that allowed hackers to get their hands on masses of private Snapchat content.

It was a big embarrassment for the startup, even though its own servers were not hit in the attack. Since then, it’s been working on ways to make it more difficult for third-party apps to access its content, which include asking Apple and Google to remove offending software from their app stores.

Recommended Videos

This week, however, Snapchat said it’s now found a way of reliably blocking all third-party apps from accessing the messaging software’s data. In doing so, the LA-based startup hopes to reduce the chances of further difficult incidents down the road, while improving users’ security.

The move appears to be part of an ongoing effort by Snapchat to portray itself as a more serious and responsible enterprise as it continues to attract marketers and investors to its fast-expanding product.

Speaking to Backchannel recently, Snapchat executives admitted the company should’ve been more assertive in cracking down on third-party apps that let users archive content, an action that was in direct conflict with the app’s main feature and consequently violated its terms of service.

“We never wanted third-party apps on our platform,” Snapchat’s Tim Sehn told Backchannel. “We have created a product where it is more critically important than ever before that we control the end user experience. We’ve made commitments to our users.”

Transparency report

News that Snapchat has shored up its security coincided with the publication of details of its first ever transparency report, due out in July. Similar to reports put out by tech giants like Apple, Microsoft, and Google, Snapchat promises to detail government requests received for users’ account information, government demands to remove users’ content, and requests to remove content that violates copyright law.

In a preview of July’s report, Snapchat revealed it received 375 information requests from the U.S. government in connection with 666 accounts from November 1, 2014 through February 28 of this year. Outside of the U.S., it received just 28 requests for 35 accounts.

This week’s developments come at a time of rapid expansion for Snapchat. Besides growing its user base, which most commentators put at between 100 million and 200 million, the company has also increased its team from 35 to 200 in the space of a year, and built out its app with a slew of new features.

The startup continues to attract huge amounts of investment, too, including some $486 million in late 2014, and a reported $200 million just recently, from Chinese Internet giant Alibaba.

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
Everything you need to know about the OnePlus 13
Official OnePlus 13 product renders showing rear panel colors.

OnePlus is an excellent brand that offers powerful flagship phones at a great value compared to some of its competitors. We followed every rumor about the OnePlus 13 for months, but now it's here — and it's everything we hoped for. It might not be available in the Western market yet, but it will be soon.

So, what makes the OnePlus 13 so special? Here's everything you need to know about OnePlus' latest flagship.
When is the OnePlus 13 being released?

Read more
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite vs. MediaTek Dimensity 9400: the race is on
Comparison of Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite and MediaTek Dimensity 9400 processors.

The flagship mobile silicon race has entered its next phase, one that will dictate the trajectory of Android hardware heading into 2025. Merely weeks after MediaTek wowed us with the Dimensity 9400 system on a chip (SoC), Qualcomm also pulled a surprise with the reveal of the Snapdragon 8 Elite.

But this time around, the battle is not as straightforward. Where MediaTek is working closely with Arm and adopting its latest CPU and graphics innovations, Qualcomm has firmly put its faith in custom cores. These are no ordinary cores, but a next-gen iteration of the same fundamental tech stack that powers Windows on ARM laptops.

Read more
Discolored line on your new Kindle? You aren’t alone
Amazon Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition on a table.

The new Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition is the first full-color e-reader, and a lot of bookworms couldn't wait to get their hands on it. Sadly, many people are reporting the display has a discolored yellow area at the bottom of the screen. The problem is so widespread that the Kindle Colorsoft dropped to an average review rating of 2.6 out of 5, although it does remain the bestselling e-book reader at the moment.

The cause of the discoloration isn't clear. Some users report that it only happens when using the edge lighting feature on the Kindle, while others say it appeared after a software update. Either way, the yellowing is a problem, especially on a device that Amazon has marketed as being great for comics and graphic novel fans. It's hard to enjoy the colorwork in a comic when it's distorted.

Read more