Snapchat picks up new tricks to deter suspicious users and teen safety tools

What you need to know

• Snapchat detailed several new tools that teen users can utilize to ensure their safety, such as expanded in-app warnings for unknown users.
• The block button has been upgraded, not only will it keep a user away but it will also reject any friend requests created on that person's device from new accounts.
• Snapchat detailed several new features for its platform, such as an edit button, Bitomoji customization, and more.

Snapchat is highlighting a few new tools that are arriving for its community that might provide a little more peace of mind.

According to a Policy Hub post , Snapchat announced an expansion of safeguard measures to better protect its users from "suspicious" users. Moving forward, teen users should notice an improved version of those in-app warnings . Snapchat states such users will be warned about a user with an unsavory past, i.e; they've been blocked or reported several times before.

Additionally, the new in-app warnings will factor in whether or not the person privately messaging a user is from another country. The post adds that such a signal could be indicative of a scam, thus provoking the warning.

Snapchat details "enhanced friending protections," designed to go hand-in-hand with the upgraded in-app warnings. These new protections should make it more difficult for strangers to use Search and discover teen users through Quick Add. The app is said to block the delivery of a friend request from a user a teen account doesn't have a mutual friend with.

The block button gains a buff, with the company stating that blocking a user will now "block new friend requests sent from other accounts created on the same device." The intention is to help get a handle on early signs of cyberbullying and other forms of harassment.

Lastly, Snapchat states it's increasing the frequency of its location-sharing reminders. This will be joined by the introduction of "simplified location-sharing" through the Snap Map. The feature will provide simpler customization controls to help users quickly enable which friends can view their current location.

Users will find options to select which friends are excluded from seeing their location or handpicking a specific list of users. Additionally, users can have their location open to everyone they've befriended.

These security and safety updates should begin rolling out in the days ahead.

Similarly, Meta introduced an array of protections for supervised teen accounts on Instagram and Facebook earlier this year. Not only must teens submit a request for a settings change, but "Stricter Messaging" rolled in to protect those aged 16 (or 18) from texts from unknown users.

In other news, Snapchat highlighted a few new features for its platform, such as My AI reminders, avatar reactions in Snap Map, and Bitmoji customization options. The kicker in that previous update was confirmation of an edit button for messages. Snapchat calls them "editable chats," giving users five minutes to return to a text to correct mistakes.

Snapchat Plus subscribers will get their hands on this before it flows down to everyone else.