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 Guide, Privacy Policy, and Terms of Service.
Category
Requests
Account Identifiers
Percentage of requests where some data was produced
Total
10,061
16,058
80%
Subpoena
2,214
4,112
76%
PRTT
87
139
90%
Court Order
222
413
87%
Search Warrant
6,325
9,707
83%
EDR
1,106
1,310
65%
Wiretap Order
9
18
89%
Summons
98
349
85%
Country
Emergency Requests
Account Identifiers for Emergency Requests
Percentage of emergency requests where some data was produced
Other Information Requests
Account Identifiers for Other Requests
Percentage of other information request where some data was produced
Total
665
812
63%
625
917
0%
Argentina
0
0
0%
1
1
0%
Australia
11
14
55%
17
26
0%
Austria
1
1
100%
7
7
0%
Bahrain
1
1
100%
0
0
0%
Belgium
1
2
100%
11
11
0%
Brazil
0
0
0%
1
1
0%
Canada
161
181
70%
7
15
14%
Denmark
2
2
50%
37
46
0%
Estonia
0
0
0%
3
4
0%
France
44
54
32%
74
116
0%
Germany
39
47
56%
117
186
0%
India
3
7
0%
15
26
0%
Ireland
1
1
100%
1
1
0%
Israel
1
1
100%
0
0
0%
Jordan
0
0
0%
2
2
0%
Latvia
0
0
0%
1
1
0%
Lithuania
0
0
0%
1
1
0%
Macedonia
0
0
0%
1
1
0%
Malta
0
0
0%
1
1
0%
Monaco
4
5
25%
2
6
0%
Netherlands
24
31
54%
2
2
0%
New Zealand
2
2
0%
1
2
0%
Norway
17
22
71%
33
51
0%
Pakistan
1
1
0%
0
0
0%
Poland
3
5
33%
14
29
0%
Qatar
2
2
50%
0
0
0%
Slovenia
0
0
0%
1
1
0%
Sweden
9
11
33%
23
27
0%
Switzerland
10
11
60%
10
17
0%
United Arab Emirates
16
18
75%
0
0
0%
United Kingdom
312
393
67%
242
336
1%
National Security
Requests
Account Identifiers*
NSLs and FISA Orders/Directives
O-249
1250-1499
Removal Requests
Percentage of requests where some content was removed
26
8%
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.
Country
Number of requests
Number of posts removed or restricted or number of accounts suspended
Australia
42
55
France
46
67
Iraq
2
2
New Zealand
19
29
Qatar
1
1
United Kingdom
17
20
DMCA Takedown Notices
Percentage of requests where some content was removed
50
34%
DMCA Counter-Notices
Percentage of requests where some content was reinstated
0
N/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.