Snapchat Locks Younger Teens Out of Public Spotlight Videos

Snapchat is tightening how its youngest users share short videos on the app. The platform will no longer let teens aged 13 to 15 post to the publicly viewable version of Spotlight.

Spotlight is the app's hub for shortform vertical videos, similar to Instagram Reels or TikTok. Unlike most of Snapchat, posts shared there are public and can be viewed by anyone in the app.

Until now, users as young as 13 could contribute to that public feed. The app did not link younger teens' profiles to those posts, but the content remained visible to most users.

The change moves 13 to 15 year olds into a friends-only sharing experience instead. Their Spotlight content will now be visible only to mutually accepted friends.

Snap announced the update on Wednesday (June 10) through a company blog post. The shift applies to both Spotlight videos and Stories posted by younger teens.

The app is adding a new profile space for these users to create and share content. There they can save and share Stories and Spotlight videos with their mutual friends only.

Snap framed the move as a way to lower social pressure on younger users. The change also removes engagement metrics like favorites from that experience.

According to Snap, the new setup is designed to encourage creativity within a trusted audience. The company said it helps protect teens from unwanted contact tied to public posting.

Older teens face fewer limits under the updated rules. Snap said users aged 16 and 17 can still share content publicly with some safeguards in place.

Enforcement depends on how Snapchat estimates a user's age. The app currently relies on self-attested age and age inference rather than strict verification.

According to Mashable, Snapchat defaulted a tested user's age to 18 during its age check. If the app determines a user is under 16, that person is moved into friends-only sharing.

The update lands amid growing scrutiny of how social platforms protect minors. Snap is currently facing numerous lawsuits over its record on child safety.

Pressure From Safety Advocates

Last week several advocacy groups published a survey of teen Snapchat users. The groups included Heat Initiative, Anxious Generation, ParentsTogether Action, and Design It 4 Us.

According to Mashable, a third of the 1,016 respondents reported unsafe content or messages in the past week. More than 40% of those who got unwanted messages believed the sender was an adult.

A Snap spokesperson said the report does not fully reflect the company's safety investments. In January, Snap settled a teen's lawsuit and later introduced new parental controls.