USA: Snapchat is being sued over the rape of a minor; two features of the app helped the accused contact the girl

News Topical, Digital Desk : Snapchat, the world-renowned photo and chat social media platform, is in trouble once again. That’s because a major lawsuit has been filed against Snapchat’s parent company, Snap, in the US state of Missouri. This time the claim is that some of the features of Snapchat allowed a 25-year-old accused to make contact with a 12-year-old innocent girl and commit a crime such as sexual abuse against her.

What is the whole affair

The complaint says the 25-year-old accused, Gabriel Joel Valentin-Rios, reached out to the victim on Snapchat. Two things about the app are being looked at. First, Quick Add, which let the accused contact underage girls in the area, portrayed the accused’s profile as that of a simple, friendly man.

Snap Map is another feature of the app that has also raised questions. According to the reports, this feature enabled the accused to trace the location of the girl. Snapchat failed to warn children that people on the app could be strangers or dangerous, the lawsuit claims.

The dark web and security: Huge revelations

Also, some shocking facts have emerged from documents presented in court. Company officials found a manual on the dark web that detailed how to use Snapchat's features to trap children. But the company did not move swiftly to act forcefully. A survey has found that more than half of children who use Snapchat have seen “unsafe or pornographic” messages and images on the app in the past year.

Why is this a big deal for India

It is worth mentioning that India is the biggest market for Snapchat across the globe. According to the statistics, Snapchat has more than 250 million active users in India. India alone makes up an estimated 36 percent of all Snapchat users worldwide. Over 25 countries with 90% of youth 13 to 24 years old using the app. This has caused concerns over the safety of Indian children and youth.

legal action against social media firms worldwide

It is worth mentioning that this is not an isolated case. Major firms such as Facebook, Instagram (Meta), TikTok and YouTube are also accused of addicting children to their apps and damaging their mental health. There are more than 3,300 lawsuits pending against the companies in California courts alone.