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Blocking people on Snapchat is easy—and practically essential

Some people need to take the hint.

 

Amrita Khalid

Tech

Posted on Sep 28, 2016   Updated on May 25, 2021, 10:10 pm CDT

There may come a time when you find yourself needing to block a friend on Snapchat. 

Maybe you’re being harassed, bullied, or pummeled with anonymous nude pictures. Or maybe a relationship has gone sour. Whatever the reason may be, it’s pretty simple to block someone on Snapchat. 

Snapchat is fairly private to begin with (at least when it comes to what other individuals can see, and not advertisors). Unlike and Instagram, where the default privacy setting allows the world to see your funny tweets and filtered Instagram photos of the ocean, Snapchat is meant to be pretty intimate. It’s hard to stumble upon a stranger’s Snapchat account out of the blue. You’ll need to find have a person’s phone number, Snapcode, or find their Snapchat account on “Nearby Friends.” 

When you add a friend on Snapchat, it allows you to see their Story, get their snaps, and chat with them. Your friend must add you back for them to be able to do the same with your account. But Snapchat is different from Facebook, where one user’s acceptance of another user’s friend request gives both parties access to each other’s profiles. Snapchat (depending on your privacy settings) lets you add friends without needing their approval, and vice versa. This can make for some pretty awkward situations down the line. 

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Blocking a friend on Snapchat is different from deleting a friend on Snapchat. Deleting a friend will simply prevent you from seeing their snaps and Story, but it won’t perform the same action on their end. If they still have you as a friend, even if you’ve removed them, they will still be able to see what you send out to the world. That’s why blocking someone on Snapchat is the best way to stop harassment you encounter on the social media platform. 

How to block a friend on Snapchat: 

Step One: Tap the settings tool icon in the upper-right hand corner of your screen

Step Two: Tap “My Friends” on the profile screen

Step Three: Tap on their name

Step Four: Tap on the settings below their name and select “Block”

How to block a stranger who added you on Snapchat:

Step One: Tap “Added Me” on the profile screen

Step Two: Swipe left on their name

Step Three: Press “Block”

How to block a stranger who chatted you on Snapchat:

If you have your privacy settings set to allow everyone—not just your friends—on Snapchat to chat you, you may have more than a couple unwanted interactions on the platform. 

Step One: Swipe left on the Snapchatter’s name to open up their chat screen 

Step Two: Tap on the three blue horizontal lines

Step Three: Tap “Block” 

How to block a friend from seeing your Story:

Say you want to prevent certain friends (i.e. exes, parents, relatives) from seeing your Story of your Saturday night out. 

Step One: Tap the Snapchat ghost icon at the top of your camera screen

Step Two:  Tap the settings tool icon in the upper-right-hand corner of your screen 

Step Three: Scroll down to “Who Can…” and tap “View My Story” 

Step Four: Tap “Custom”. Select the specific friends you wish to block from viewing your story 

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*First Published: Sep 28, 2016, 6:00 am CDT