By Nadza Dzidic; Opinion Editor

     With an abundance of social networking sites, Snapchat has recently pioneered its way into the cellphones of students across the country. Its origins stem from Stanford University, where two students launched the homegrown website.
Snapchat allows users to send pictures or videos that self-destruct in a specified amount of time, ten seconds being the max. The app has appealed to many students and has risen in popularity over the past few months, averaging at about 50 million snaps per day. Users view it as a way to share moments while they happen.
“I like Snapchat, it’s just a fun way to talk with friends,” said Sejla Mehmedovic, sophomore.
Although the app “self-destructs” photos, concern has grown over the security of the app.
Recently the app experienced a glitch in which the photos sent weren’t really destroyed. Also, photos can be screen shot and saved permanently to a phone, allowing one to share the photo publicly.
Snapchat allows users to feel free when sending photos, and therefore provides a false sense of security, resulting in teens sending inappropriate images. Questionable decisions collide with “selfies” and could potentially make their way to the internet.
Some students choose to stay away from snapchat altogether.
“I just look at it like another social network, like Facebook or Twitter. It’ll lose popularity just like the others eventually. I think harm can come with it for sure,” said Nathan Smithee, senior.
With an app like Snapchat, comes personal responsibility. The app itself does not make mistakes, it’s the user that chooses what he or she wants to send. Snapchat can be used as a fun way to communicate with friends, but caution must be taken.
“If it’s used for the right purposes it’s great, but if someone uses it for bad it can certainly be harmful,” said Dr. Denise Swanger, head principal.
Just like every other social networking system, Snapchat aids in communication between friends, but thinking before snapping is always recommended.