• January 21, 2022
  • Posted by: Keith Graves
  • Categories: Drug Trends, Schools
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Is Drug Dealing on Snapchat Really a Problem?

Snapchat announced a change this week to its friend recommendation feature to make it more difficult for people selling illicit substances to connect with minors under 17, NBC News reports. One of the most popular social media platforms, Snapchat is a relatively new app that has taken the world by storm. As with any new technology, there are also some downsides to it. With Snapchat, people are finding new ways to commit crimes or engage in illegal activities. One of the most popular ways is by using snapchat to facilitate drug deals. Snapchat is an app that allows users to send pictures and videos to their friends for a maximum of 10 seconds. This might seem innocent at first, but there’s a dark side to the app. Drug dealers are posting snaps of their drugs, like Xanax, fentanyl and MDMA, for users to contact them and make a buy later. Drug dealers like Snapchat because the photos and text will disappear after a few seconds (nothing really disappears in the digital world, though). 

 

 

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Snapchat Announces Changes to Halt Drug Dealing

Last fall, NBC News reported that teens and young adults in over a dozen states overdosed after buying fentanyl-laced pills on the popular app. The pills were sold as prescription medications such as Percocet, OxyContin or Xanax, but were counterfeits that contained fentanyl.

In a blog post, the company that owns Snapchat said it is changing its friend recommendation feature, called Quick Add. The feature will no longer suggest people add accounts belonging to minors unless they have a certain number of friends in common with that person. This change makes it more difficult for strangers to become friends on Snapchat with people they don’t know.

“While we know that drug dealers seek to connect with potential customers on platforms outside of Snapchat, we want to do everything we can to keep minors from being discovered on Snapchat by people who may engage in illegal or harmful behavior,” the company said.



Author: Keith Graves
Keith is a retired Police Sergeant, working his entire 29 year career in the San Francisco Bay Area. Keith is a recipient of the prestigious California’s Narcotics Officer of the Year Award and is a prior winner of MADD’s California Hero Award. He has years of experience as a Narcotics Detective and a Narcotics Unit Supervisor and is a Drug Recognition Expert Instructor (IACP #3292). Keith has developed several courses for the Department of Defense, California Narcotics Officers Association, and California POST, and numerous police agencies and private corporations. Keith has held other assignments besides narcotics including Training Sergeant, Patrol Sergeant, COPPS Officer, Traffic Officer, and 20 years as a SWAT Team member and Sniper Team Leader. Keith has taught thousands of officers and businesses around the world about drug use, drug trends, compliance training and drug investigations. Keith is also the founder of Christian Warrior Training, where he provides free resources and training to church security ministries. He is recognized as an international drug expert and has testified as an expert in court proceedings on drug cases, homicide cases and rape prosecutions. Keith earned a BA in Business Management from Saint Mary’s College of California and a MA in Criminal Justice. Keith is the Founder and President of Graves & Associates, a company dedicated to providing drug training to law enforcement, the Department of Defense, and private industry internationally. You can follow Keith on social media on Facebook (DopeCop and DrugEnforcementCops), twitter (DopeCop) and Instagram (DrugEnforcementCops).

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