Transparency Report

January 1, 2019 – June 30, 2019

Released: November 25, 2019

Updated: November 25, 2019

Snapchat Transparency Reports are released twice a year. These reports provide important insight into the volume and nature of governmental requests for Snapchatters' account information and other legal notifications.

Since November 15, 2015, our policy has been to notify Snapchatters when we receive legal process seeking their account information, with exceptions for cases where we are legally prohibited from doing so, or when we believe there are exceptional circumstances (like child exploitation or an imminent risk of death or bodily injury).

For more information about how we handle law enforcement data requests, please take a look at our Law Enforcement GuidePrivacy Policy, and Terms of Service.

United States Criminal Legal Requests

Requests for User Information pursuant to U.S. legal process.

CategoryRequestsAccount IdentifiersPercentage of requests where some data was produced
Total10,06116,05880%
Subpoena2,2144,11276%
PRTT8713990%
Court Order22241387%
Search Warrant6,3259,70783%
EDR1,1061,31065%
Wiretap Order91889%
Summons9834985%

International Government Information Requests

Requests for User Information from government entities outside the United States.

CountryEmergency RequestsAccount Identifiers for Emergency RequestsPercentage of emergency requests where some data was producedOther Information RequestsAccount Identifiers for Other RequestsPercentage of other information request where some data was produced
Total66581263%6259170%
Argentina000%110%
Australia111455%17260%
Austria11100%770%
Bahrain11100%000%
Belgium12100%11110%
Brazil000%110%
Canada16118170%71514%
Denmark2250%37460%
Estonia000%340%
France445432%741160%
Germany394756%1171860%
India370%15260%
Ireland11100%110%
Israel11100%000%
Jordan000%220%
Latvia000%110%
Lithuania000%110%
Macedonia000%110%
Malta000%110%
Monaco4525%260%
Netherlands243154%220%
New Zealand220%120%
Norway172271%33510%
Pakistan110%000%
Poland3533%14290%
Qatar2250%000%
Slovenia000%110%
Sweden91133%23270%
Switzerland101160%10170%
United Arab Emirates161875%000%
United Kingdom31239367%2423361%

United States National Security Requests

Requests for User Information pursuant to national security legal process.

National SecurityRequestsAccount Identifiers*
NSLs and FISA Orders/DirectivesO-2491250-1499

Government Content Removal Requests

This category identifies demands by a government entity to remove content that would otherwise be permissible under our Terms of Service or Community Guidelines.

Removal RequestsPercentage of requests where some content was removed
268%

Note: Although we do not formally track when we remove content that violates our policies when a request has been made by a governmental entity, we believe it is an extremely rare occurrence. When we believe it is necessary to restrict content that is deemed unlawful in a particular country, but does not otherwise violate our policies, we seek to restrict access to it geographically when possible, rather than remove it globally.

This category identifies demands by a government entity to remove content that would be a violation under our Terms of Service or Community Guidelines.

CountryNumber of requestsNumber of posts removed or restricted or number of accounts suspended
Australia4255
France4667
Iraq22
New Zealand1929
Qatar11
United Kingdom1720

Copyrighted Content Takedown Notices (DMCA)

This category reflects any valid takedown notices we received under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.

DMCA Takedown NoticesPercentage of requests where some content was removed
5034%
DMCA Counter-NoticesPercentage of requests where some content was reinstated
0N/A

* “Account Identifiers” reflects the number of identifiers (e.g. username, email address, phone number, etc.) specified by law enforcement in legal process when requesting user information. Some legal process may include more than one identifier. In some instances, multiple identifiers may identify a single account. In instances where a single identifier is specified in multiple requests, each instance is included.

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