Online Sense is ICDL Arabia's philanthropic arm aimed at raising public awareness on Cyber Safety.

Snapchat is probably one of your favorite social networking apps in the world, isn’t it?

But how many people do you know in your list of Snapchat followers who know how to report abuse, such as cyber bullying or online harassment?

Why You Should Report Abuse on Snapchat

Cyberbullying happens on every social media platform.

Every. Single. One.

Unfortunately, there’s no escaping from cyber bullying, as the Internet makes it easy for people to hide from others.

If you haven’t seen cyber bullying happen on Snapchat, chances are bullies will find a way to harass you.

Also, if you think about it, Snapchat is one of the most ideal places for bullies to target people online. It’s private, it’s easy to use, and it erases any pictures and videos you send within 24 hours. On top of that, once someone sees the picture or video, it only stays on their phones for 10 seconds before it gets deleted from their phones.

Most bullies know what they’re doing is wrong, and don’t want to leave a trail of evidence at the risk of getting caught.

Not to worry, though. We’re going to show you how to report abuse on Snapchat.

How to Report Abuse on Snapchat

It all starts with going to Snapchat Support.

It will take you to this screen:

Snapchat Support: Main Page

Once you’re on there, Snapchat will ask you three questions:

1. What can we help you with?

This is exactly what you see above.

Select the option, ‘I have a safety concern.’

2. What do you have a concern about?

Choose between one of the following options:
• A Snap or Chat I’ve received
• A Story I viewed
• A Snapchat account
• I think my account was hacked

The Third Question on Snapchat Support

If you answered ‘A Snap or Chat I’ve received,’ you will be directed to a third question:

What is your concern with this content?

If you select ‘A Snap or Chat I’ve received,’ you will be asked, “What is your concern with this content?”

Snapchat Support: Report Abuse

If you answered ‘A Story I viewed,’ select ‘A Snapchatter’s Story’ for the third question: “What type of Story concerns you?” Then you will get these options:

Snapchat Support: Report Abuse

If you are being cyber bullied on Snapchat, you will receive the following message at the bottom of your screen:

Snapchat Support: Need Help?

They make two good points here:
1) Block the account from posting Snaps or Chats to you.

2) Change your privacy settings to prevent Snapchat users from sending you images and videos to your account. You can do this by selecting the ‘My Friends’ option in the ‘Contact Me’ section.

3) If you still need help, select yes (the orange button above). It will direct you to a form. Fill it out and they will get back to you as soon as they can.

Here’s what the form looks like:
Snapchat Support Form

A Few Extra Tips:

Rather than rely solely on Snapchat’s report form, there are a few extra things you can do when you’re bullied on Snapchat.

1) Talk to your parents about what’s happening.

2) Save the evidence by taking a screenshot of the photo or video. The bully will be notified when you do this, but it’s always better to document what you see when you discuss things with a trusted adult. Plus, it encourages people to think before they post.

3) Ask for extra help. Remember that it’s always okay to ask for advice when you need it. Talk to your parents or teacher about what is happening. In addition, every GCC country has a 24/7 hotline specifically for online abuse. You can contact them from this list if you want a professional opinion on what to do.