23snaps: A policy primer for NET303

A policy primer for NET303
By Alyssa Potter
23snaps logo: 23snaps, n.d.

What is it?
“23snaps is a private photo
sharing app designed by
parents, for parents.
23snaps gives you a
completely safe and
secure way to record the
special moments in your
child’s life and share
them with your loved
ones, wherever they may
be in the world.”
(23snaps, n.d.d)
23snaps screenshot: 23snaps, 2015b

In other words, you can share images,
videos, stories and other personal details
about your child and family life by inviting
those closest to you to view them through
23snaps without broadcasting it all over
social media.

So you can stop annoying your friends with
your ‘sharenting’.
A social media phenomenon that happens when one
becomes a parent and constantly shares personal
information about their child on social media,
information that the child might be embarrassed
about later in life.
University of Michigan Health System,
2015
#babysfirstphotoshoot
#cutestbabyever

Or exposing your child to the potential of
digital kidnapping.
Willets, n.d.; University of Michigan
Health System, 2015
A scary new form of
identity theft where
someone claims that
your child is their own
through photos you
have posted on social
networking sites.

BUT ENOUGH OF THE
MARKETING SPIN...

THE REAL QUESTION IS DO
THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS
REFLECT 23SNAPS
MARKETING OF BEING
‘SAFE AND SECURE’?

AND HOW ARE
YOUR
PERSONAL
DETAILS,
PHOTOS AND
VIDEOS
PROTECTED?

The Promise
“We promise that we will never share your
personal information, photos, videos or
updates without your consent.” (23snaps,
n.d.c)

The Reality
Separate to but
forming part of the
Terms and Conditions
is the Privacy Policy
that sets out users’
privacy rights and data
collection.

The Reality
It’s important to note
that this can be
changed at any time
and posted to the
website or on the app.
However it is not clear
how users are notified.

The Reality
As a United Kingdom based company, it
complies with the Data Protection Act 1998.
“An Act to make new provision for the regulation of
the processing of information relating to individuals,
including the obtaining, holding, use or disclosure
of such information.”
This Act gives you the power to access any
information held about you.

The Reality
23snaps collects:
– your full name and email
address OR login details for
your Facebook account
– location/GPS coordinates
– IP address
– device information (browser
type, device identifier)
– your activity on the App

The Reality
What happens to that information?
– data is aggregated to show and analyse users’
actions, usage and patterns to help personalise
and improve customer experience
– However they can track your personal usage

The Reality
– ability to send you updates on the content or
functionality of the App
– notify you about
services changes

The Reality
– add location to your posts
– connect with and notify friends and family about
updated content

The Reality
Good news for users is that data is not
shared with third parties for marketing
purposes unless your permission has been
received.

The Reality
However aggregated
data may be shared for
analysis.

The Reality
And personal
information can be
used to comply with
the law or to enforce
any of their policies.

The Reality
You can opt of data
sharing by contacting
them or by amending
your privacy settings in
the app.
This gives you control
over what is shared
outside of 23snaps.

WHILE PERSONAL
INFORMATION IS DEALT WITH,
THERE IS NOT A LOT OF
DETAIL ABOUT HOW IT CAN
USE YOUR PHOTOS,
VIDEOS OR
UPDATES.

When it comes to content
The Terms and Conditions grant 23snaps
“a non-exclusive, worldwide, perpetual,
irrevocable licence to use your Content to the
extent necessary for 23snaps to provide the
Service” (23snaps, n.d.a).
“Nothing in these Terms will serve to transfer
ownership of the Content or the Intellectual
Property rights therein to 23snaps” (23snaps,
n.d.a).

This means that they are the only ones that
can use your content.
And you remain the owner of the Content
And they can only use it to provide the
Service

It also explicitly states that you cannot use
another user’s content unless you get their
permission.
This protects you from others in your circle
sharing those personal details of your
child’s life.

If you decide you no
longer want to use the
service, you can delete
the account.
Along with all your
data (which will only
be held in backup as
required by law).

SO WHAT ARE YOUR
RESPONSIBILITIES?

Your Responsibilities
• You agree that you are responsible for all your
activities on the app.
• You agree that the Content you upload is not
illegal, offensive or inappropriate.
• You agree that you are uploading Content that
you have the copyright to.
• You are over 18 years of age.
• You are the legal guardian of the child/children
that you connect to the account.

If you breach any of
those conditions,
23snaps can remove any
of your content.
It can also terminate the
App and delete the
content.
The good news is that
you will have at least 30
days to retrieve your
content.

BUT WHAT HAPPENS
IF THE CONTENT OF
23SNAPS IS
ILLEGALLY
ACCESSED?
AND ITS CONTENTS
MADE PUBLIC?

The Promise
“Your content is all stored in a highly secure
online environment – the same type of system
used to securely process credit card details.”
(23snaps, n.d.c)

The Reality
There is no mention
about the security and
storage of your
content in the Terms
and Conditions or the
Privacy Policy.

The Reality
Or what happens if your content is accessed
illegally or hacked.
Or if your content is
distributed illegally.

The Reality
This is concerning as
there are no guidelines
about their
responsibilities for
ensuring the security of
your content.

The Reality
The whole point of the
App is for the content
to be private.
Without any clear guidelines in the Terms and
Conditions, you have to hope that it will stay
that way (without knowing how it is).

“IT IS OUR ABILITY TO
CONTROL WHO HAS ACCESS
TO US AND WHO KNOW WHAT
ABOUT US, THAT ALLOWS US
TO SUSTAIN THE VARIETY OF
RELATIONSHIPS WE HAVE
WITH OTHERS.” Introna, 1997

SO THIS BRINGS US TO OUR
NEXT POINT...

HOW DO THEY KNOW YOU ARE
WHO YOU SAY YOU ARE?

How do they know it’s really you?
23snaps states
“By registering your details and setting up an
Account you consent to 23snaps conducting
verification and security procedures in
respect of the information provided by you
online.” (23snaps, n.d.a)

Both avenues to sign up for an account
allow for some identity verification.
#1 – First name, last
name and an
email address
#2 – Connect with
Facebook

If you register an account
with an email address, they
verify it through a verification
email.

If you register your account
by connecting with Facebook,
they are relying on
Facebook’s identity check

By registering with your Facebook account,
this allows 23snaps access to your Facebook
account.
Including your login details.
And to store that information.

However if you are insistent on registering
with phony details, there is not much to
stop you.

SO WHAT’S THE LONG AND
SHORT OF IT?

23snaps provides users with a private space to
upload content and share it with who they
choose.
They are explicit with what information they
collect and what they use it for.
They allow you to control whether your
information is shared for marketing purposes.
They are only allowed to use your content in
relation to providing the service.
You are protected from other users using your
content without your consent.

You are responsible for your content and your
behaviour.
They provide themselves with the ability to
confirm your identity.
Sadly there is no clear outline as to how the
security of the site is handled.
Or what would happen if there was a breach.
Which is key considering this App is all about
privacy of your family’s life.

So all your content is protected from being
used by 23snaps for any purpose.

But you still need to be careful with what
you post, as you never know if the content is
safe from being illegally accessed.

So how does it rate?
Using the Privacy Protection Scale
introduced by Goettke and Christiana
(2007), 23snaps would be rated a Tier Five
(5) website.
“websites [that] completely ensure the privacy
protection of all users. “ (Goettke & Christiana,
2007, p.3)

References
23snaps. (n.d.a). TERMS & CONDITIONS. Retrieved 17 October, 2015, from
https://www.23snaps.com/terms
23snaps. (n.d.b). Homepage. Retrieved 17 October, 2015, from https://www.23snaps.com/
23snaps. (n.d.c). Privacy. Retrieved 17 October, 2015, from https://www.23snaps.com/privacy
23snaps. (n.d.d) OUR STORY. Retrieved 17 October, 2015 from https://www.23snaps.com/about
23snaps. (2015a). 23snaps logo [Image]. Retrieved from https://23snaps.zendesk.com/hc/en-us
23snaps. (2015b). 23snaps homepage [screenshot]. Retrieved from https://www.23snaps.com/
23snaps. (2015c). 23snaps Sign Up [screenshot]. Retrieved from
https://www.23snaps.com/account/register

References
Goettke, R. & Christiana, J. (2007). Privacy and Online Social Networking Websites. Computer
Science 199r: Special Topics in Computer Science Computation and Society: Privacy and
Technology. Retrieved from http://www.eecs.harvard.edu/cs199r/fp/RichJoe.pdf
Introna, L. D. (1997). Privacy and the computer: why we need privacy in the information society.
Metaphilosophy, 28(3), 259-275. Retrieved from
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.dbgw.lis.curtin.edu.au
University of Michigan Health System; 'Sharenting' trends: Do parents share too much about kids on
social media? (2015). Pediatrics Week, 11. Retrieved from
http://search.proquest.com.dbgw.lis.curtin.edu.au
Willets, M. (n.d.) Posting Your Kids' Pics on Facebook May Put Them at Risk for Digital Kidnapping.
Parenting. Retrieved from http://www.parenting.com
Images
All images are under a Creative Commons CC0 licence. Retrieved from https://www.pexels.com/
and https://pixabay.com/

23snaps: A policy primer for NET303

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