Privacy policies tend to be pretty long — and pretty confusing. That’s why we did our best to make our Privacy Policy brief, clear, and easy-to-read!

You should read our entire Privacy Policy, but when you only have a few minutes or want to remember something later on, you can always take a look at this summary — so you can learn or recall some of the basics in just a few minutes.

At Snap, our mission is to empower people to express themselves, live in the moment, learn about the world, and have fun together.

To provide our Services and make them better, we learn some things about you to personalize your experience when you use Snapchat, Bitmoji, and our other Services. For example, if we know it’s your birthday, we can send you and your friends a Lens to help celebrate! Or, if we see that you’re spending a day at the beach, we can make sure your Bitmoji is dressed for the occasion. Nice, right?

Another way we provide a personalized Service is through the ads we show — it’s also one of the ways we are able to provide fun, safe, and innovative online spaces, without charge. We use some of what we know about you to serve ads you might be interested in — when you might be interested in them. For example, if you’ve been watching a lot of Stories about fashion, we might show you ads for the latest style of jeans. Or if you’ve clicked on a bunch of ads for video games, we might keep those ads coming! But we also use your information to avoid showing you ads you probably won’t like. For example, if a ticketing site tells us you’ve already bought tickets for a movie — or if you bought them through Snapchat — we can stop showing you ads for it. Learn more.

Want to update your account information or change who can watch your Story or see you on Snap Map? Just go to your settings in the app. Curious about your information that's not in the app? Go here to download your data. If you ever want to leave Snapchat and delete your account for good, we have tools for that too. Learn more.

First, we learn from whatever information you choose to give us. For example, when you set up a Snapchat account, we learn your birthday, email address, and the unique name you’d like to go by — your username.

Second, we learn about you when you use our Services. So, while you may not tell us you’re a sports fan, if you’re always watching basketball highlights on Spotlight and your Bitmoji is wearing your team colors, it’s a safe guess.

Third, we sometimes learn about you from other people and services. For example, if a friend uploads their contact list, we might see your phone number. Or, if you tap on an ad for a video game, the advertiser may let us know that you installed it. Learn more.

When we share information, it’s usually because you ask us to — like when you want to add a Snap to Spotlight or Snap Map or send a Chat to a friend. Some of your information, like your username and Snapcode, is visible to the public by default.

We also share information within the Snap family of companies, with business and integrated partners that help us provide our Services, when we think it’s required by law, and when we believe it's needed to protect the safety of Snapchatters, us, or others.

For most everything else, you’re in control! Learn more.

Snapchat is about living in the moment. That's why when you send a Snap or Chat to a friend, our system is designed to delete it by default after it's viewed or expires (depending on your settings). Still, we may keep messages when you or a friend asks us to, like when you save a message in Chat or a Snap to Memories.

And remember: Snapchatters can always take a screenshot!

Other information may be kept for longer. For example, we store your basic account information until you ask us to delete it. And we’re constantly collecting and updating information about the things you might like and dislike, so we can provide you with better content and advertisements. Learn more.

Have a look at our full Privacy Policy!

Did you know Privacy by Product provides more information on specific features, and we’ve also created a ton of support pages to help you learn how different parts of the app work?

Still can’t find what you’re looking for? Don’t worry, just reach out to us and our friendly support team will get back to you!