90 Total
28 High severity
50 Medium severity
12 Low severity

Key Facts

What does Snapchat receive from advertisers, app developers, publishers, and other third parties?
Snapchat receives data from advertisers, app developers, publishers, and other third parties to help target or measure the performance of ads.
What does Snapchat do with data received from advertisers, app developers, publishers, and other third parties?
Snapchat receives data from advertisers, app developers, publishers, and other third parties to help target or measure the performance of ads.
When are Snapchat's systems designed to delete Chats?
Snapchat's systems are designed to delete Chats within 24 hours after the recipient reads them, unless the user has changed default settings or decided to save the Chat.
Does Snapchat use content of images, videos, or audio posted to show related content?
Snapchat uses information based on the content of images, videos, or audio you post to show you more content related to the subjects identified in that content.
What may Snapchat infer across its services?
Snapchat may infer your interests across its services—including Spotlight, My AI, and Memories—and use those inferences to surface related content in other parts of the app, such as the Snap Map.
What information does Snapchat share with a parent or guardian when Family Center is enabled?
When Family Center is enabled, Snapchat shares information about a connected teen account—including who the teen's Friends are on Snapchat—with the parent or guardian.
Who does Snapchat share information about a connected teen account with when Family Center is enabled?
When Family Center is enabled, Snapchat shares information about a connected teen account—including who the teen's Friends are on Snapchat—with the parent or guardian.
How long does Snapchat keep user information?
Snapchat keeps user information as long as the user directs, otherwise as long as needed to provide its Services, or as required by law.
When does Snapchat keep user information as long as needed to provide its Services?
Snapchat keeps user information as long as the user directs, otherwise as long as needed to provide its Services, or as required by law.
Where may Snapchat collect, transfer, store, and process users' personal information?
Snapchat may collect, transfer, store, and process users' personal information in the United States or other countries outside of where the user lives.
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Summary

This policy explains what information Snapchat collects about you, how it uses that information to personalize your experience and show you ads, and how long it keeps your data. Snapchat receives data about you from outside companies—not just what you share directly—and uses your activity across different parts of the app to build a picture of your interests. Your private messages to friends are not used for ads or personalization, and you can delete your account and some—but not all—of your information within the app.

Analysis

This document establishes how Snapchat collects, uses, retains, and shares personal information across its Services. Snapchat collects data not only directly from users but also from advertisers, app developers, publishers, and other third parties for ad targeting and measurement. It uses information drawn from posted media content, cross-service activity inferences, and automated tagging to personalize user experiences, while explicitly carving out private communications from personalization and ad targeting. Retention is governed by user instruction, operational need, and legal obligation, with Chat deletion designed—but not guaranteed—to occur within 24 hours of being read. Users hold limited deletion rights covering some, but not all, in-app information, and personal data may be transferred to and processed in countries outside the user's residence.

What this means for you

Snapchat analyzes the content of images, videos, and audio you post, combines your activity across Spotlight, My AI, Memories, and other features to infer your interests, and uses data from third parties such as advertisers and publishers to target ads to you. Conversations you have with My AI are used to improve Snapchat's AI systems. Your private communications to friends are explicitly excluded from personalization and ad targeting. Chats are designed to delete within 24 hours of being read, but this does not apply if you or your friend have changed default settings or saved the Chat. You can delete your account and certain in-app content—including content in Memories, content shared with My AI, and Spotlight submissions—directly within the Services.

Institutional Analysis
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Which mapped governance frameworks each document engages, tied to the specific provisions that engage them.

1 important change detected

6 versions captured · Last updated: August 2026

What changed In an update detected on August 5, 2026, Snapchat reorganized its privacy policy navigation and structure, introducing a new policy hub that groups privacy, safety, transparency, and policy resources under unified headings. The document added 40 sentences of descriptive content for various policy categories (Community Guidelines, Content Guidelines, Advertising Policies, Safety Resources, Transparency Reports, and others) and modified 37 existing sentences. The effective date of the underlying privacy policy itself is stated as September 21, 2026, with prior policy language applying until that date. The operational change is primarily organizational and informational; users will encounter clearer navigation to existing policies rather than new data collection or processing authority.
Why this matters The updated policy hub reorganizes how privacy, safety, and transparency information is presented to users, but does not materially change what data Snapchat collects or how it is used. The privacy policy itself becomes effective September 21, 2026, replacing the prior policy that applied until that date. The changes are primarily organizational and informational, making existing policies easier to locate and understand.
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Featured, High severity

Complete Provision Index

Every distinct legal provision identified in this document. Featured provisions appear above with analysis.

90 provisions
12 featured
11 clause types
28 high severity
AI / Automated Decision-Making 1 1 high
Enforcement Actions 1 1 high
Policy Changes 1
Targeting and Audience Restrictions 1
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Mapped Governance Frameworks

BIPA
Illinois, USA
View official text ↗
CCPA/CPRA
California, USA
View official text ↗
COPPA
United States Federal
View official text ↗
Connecticut Data Privacy Act Amendments
US-CT
View official text ↗
CAN-SPAM
United States Federal
View official text ↗
FTC Act Section 5
United States Federal
View official text ↗
GDPR
European Union
View official text ↗
Indiana Consumer Data Protection Act
US-IN
View official text ↗
Kentucky Consumer Data Protection Act
US-KY
View official text ↗
UK GDPR
United Kingdom
View official text ↗
Universal Opt-Out Mechanism Expansion 2026
US
View official text ↗
VPPA
United States Federal
View official text ↗
Archival ProvenanceSource & Archival Record
Last Captured August 19, 2026 00:27 UTC
Capture Method Automated scheduled archival capture
Document ID CA-D-000102
Version ID CA-V-005900
SHA-256 a0db9ae341aef8cdd6f03ffefea4895814a3b259fd539829bb976bf85f6cba64
✓ Snapshot stored ✓ Text extracted ✓ Change verified ✓ Hash verified

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