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Digital4Good Summit: Tech Giants Discuss Online Safety and the Snapchat Family Center

digital safety digital4good social media news Apr 26, 2023
Tech Giants Discuss Online Safety and the Snapchat Family Center

 

At the 2023 Digital4Good Summit, Abby Tran, a Product Manager at Snapchat, shared her insights on digital safety. 

 

“Social media is deeply ingrained in teenagers’ lives, and parents are understandably concerned about their children’s online interactions.”

 

To address these concerns, Snapchat introduced the Family Center in August 2022, an in-app tool designed to offer parents insight into their children’s online connections without exposing the content of their conversations.

 

Snapchat’s research found that most parents were more interested in knowing who their children were communicating with than the details of their conversations. With the creation of the Family Center, Snapchat sought to provide a personal tool that gives parents and caregivers insights while respecting teenagers’ privacy and autonomy to foster discussions about safety on the platform.

 

Users can search for the Family Center using the top bar or navigate to settings. Parents must invite their teens to join, ensuring both parties know about the change and fostering crucial trust-building conversations.

 

The Family Center is free and easily accessible, and Digital4Good encourages parents to use the tool and engage in important online safety discussions with their children.

 

Everyone’s Responsible: Tech Panel Discussion

A Tech Panel discussion featured three guest speakers who emphasized the shared responsibility of digital safety. Hana Dinh from Riot Games, Sergio Pardo from Twitch, and Abby Tran from Snapchat answered questions posed by Lola Bessis, Digital4Good’s Lead Intern.

 

The panelists agreed that users and parents should stay informed about changing guidelines and new tools available on their platforms. 

 

They acknowledged the generational gap that can lead to differing perspectives and expectations between teens and parents. Hana Dinh suggested that parents educate themselves and learn from their children to better understand the digital environment.

 

Addressing the prevalence of online threats, Abby Tran revealed that Snapchat is developing a framework to combat such issues. 

 

To promote digital safety, she encouraged users to “check your settings and ensure they’re always up to date.” She also emphasized that it’s crucial to look at who your friends are and that “it’s okay to remove friends.” 

 

Because everything online is out there for anyone to see, Tran also warned users to “be conscious of what kind of content you are creating.” 

 

The three platforms represented on the panel require users to undergo verification steps to monitor bots and fake accounts, ultimately prioritizing user safety.

 

To learn more about the Snapchat Family Center and gain valuable insights from the panelists, watch the 2023 Digital4Good livestream replay.

 


 

It’s important to be aware of threats online, and that’s why Digital4Good + #ICANHELP has developed a Social Media Emergency Plan. Join the waitlist here, and be notified when the plan is available!

 


 

Digital4Good Summit: Tech Giants Discuss Online Safety and the Snapchat Family Center

By: Aneska Walrath, Seasonal PR Intern | Digital4Good

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