Snapchat to allow sharing live location in new update

Snapchat's temporary location sharing feature

Snapchat is set to introduce a WhatsApp-like feature for sharing live locations. Snapchat is a photo-sharing platform and a very common chatting base for a lot of youth. The app is rolling out a new feature wherein the users can share their real-time location for a whole 15 minutes or a few hours with their friends.

Snapchat posted on a tweet recently, “Make sure you and your friends get home safely with temporary location-sharing”.

This location-sharing feature is very similar to the Find My app on IOS, users can see and share the precise locations. This feature is available only for mutual friends on the app. For this feature, Snapchat has partnered with the non-profit It’s On Us To help young people keep each other safe.

According to the company, “Through a new safety tool in the Snap Map and an expansion of the in-app resource portal ‘Here For You,’ Snapchat and It’s On Us are helping students look out for one another and creating a safer space for students across the country.”

Also read: Snapchat to roll out novel tools & avenues to support creators

To lower the stalking risks and feeling exposed, the users can even pause sharing their location without sending the other user any notification of the same. This feature won’t allow the users to send their real-time location to all of their Snapchat friends. Moreover, this feature is the very first live location feature that is going to be on Snapchat.

This feature is quite similar to the one seen in WhatsApp, wherein one can share their live locations for a certain amount of time. As per a report by TechCrunch, users will be prompted with a reminder that the tool is meant to be used with close friends and family only when they try to disable it.

This feature will be a part of the Snap Map that the company launched in 2017. Snap Map is nothing but the feature where one can see the locations of their friends when they were last active on Snapchat. According to a report, there are almost 250 million Snap Map users worldwide.

Snapchat will be displaying a pop-up window whenever the user is accessing the live location feature for the very first time. The whole and sole purpose of this feature are to let your loved ones know when you aren’t feeling safe enough and to get you home safely.

This feature is out for everyone across the globe for both Android and IOS. In addition to the buddy system feature, beginning today Snapchat will include an in-app message about bystander awareness.

SARIKA TIWARI

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