Gaurav Rathore
His write-ups blend creativity, personal experience, and tailored technical advice, meeting reader needs effectively.
Does your child use Instagram or Snapchat? Then, you must know about the Sendit app.
Sendit is a companion app (like an add-on you use on a PC) that works with Snapchat. After Snapchat banned the top anonymous apps, like YOLO and LMK, Sendit suddenly rose to fame and gained over 3.5M downloads.
However, anonymous apps have always been stirring up some trouble, and Sendit is no exception. Many parents have said that this app has many bullies who target kids for sheer fun.
So if you have ever heard your child mentioning the app, you gotta read this blog and find out whether it’s as concerning as people say!
What are Companion Apps?
These are the apps that run on a different device rather than the primary platform. Companion apps don’t work on their own; instead, they cling to the third-party app to work. These apps are designed so the users can have a better experience. For example, you can take the Threads released by Instagram.
Sendit is a Q&A app that works as a companion app for both Snapchat and Instagram, though it works exclusively with Snapchat.
It is an anonymous app where you share prompts like “Ask me anything” (called ‘Sendit’) with your followers and get instant nameless messages on the story in return. If you are interested to know who sent you messages, you would have to pay a certain fee.
It was developed by US-based Iconic Hearts in 2018. As of 2022, it recorded over 2.6 million users across the world.
The answer to this is pretty ambiguous.
On the Google Play Store, it is rated ‘T’ or Teen, while on the Apple Store, it is rated 12+.
Iconic Heart’s privacy policy states that their “services are not intended for children under 13.” While according to the sources on the internet, the app is not for kids below 17.
All in all, you can say that Sendit Snapchat is not for kids.
Since Sendit works as an add-on, it’s pretty clear that you’ll need a Snapchat account to begin using the app.
Once you have set up the app, you can ask questions to your followers and create a Sendit using the Q&A feature. Then you will receive anonymous messages in replies. If you want to learn who sent which message, you would have to pay a fee.
You can sign up for the diamond account for $11.43/week to get hints on who sent the messages. However, these hints only reveal where they are from, what phone they use, etc., but it’s of no use. Regardless, you can’t tell who they were.
Other than that, you can also create an AI clone using the AI-based features available. You can create your own wiki page and even play AR games on it.
No, the Sendit app is not safe for kids!
The app has been causing a lot of trouble since it came out. Since Sendit is anonymous, you don’t know who is asking you questions and who is replying to your messages. Users take advantage of this feature and use it for either exploitation or bullying.
Many parents also said that their kids were being bullied on the app and were getting threatening messages. However, to find out about those bullies, they must pay, which feels like a “rip-off” and an “awful app idea.”
TechCrunch also released a post talking about the various risks of anonymous social apps, like Sendit and NGL. The report revealed that it is now “one of those apps that are supposed to be banned from Snapchat” due to not following the safety policies.
The reason kids fawn over this app is because of its anonymity. They get to ask fun questions from their followers and learn what people actually think of them.
To be honest, kids like it because they think of it as a safe space where they can express their opinions without any fear of being judged. Here, they can ask lighthearted questions and learn more about people playfully.
Altogether, it makes Sendit Snapchat more exciting and appeals to Gen Alpha.
Social apps like Kik, Sendit, and NGL are pretty dangerous to kids who have yet to learn the way of the world. Here I’ve covered the major ones, so make sure to go through them.
Cyberbullies are like buzzing mosquitoes who come back no matter how hard you try to chase them. Anonymous social media has surely gassed these bullies, and Sendit is no exception.
Kids and adults continue to get harassed and bullied online. Even after paying the promised $12, you get such pathetic hints that give nothing about the bullies. So, the real identities of bullies are never made public.
I don’t think you would want your kids to go through that horrifying experience, even if we were talking about a hypothetical situation.
As Sendit is anonymous, of course, you’ll find some predators. Apart from that, it’s also possible that your child might encounter some inappropriate content or fall victim to crimes like grooming, phishing, or scams.
The app asks for $12 a week to reveal the sender. If you have left your kid unsupervised, they might overspend just to know who called them names on the internet.
Being an add-on, Sendit has two separate apps for both Instagram and Snapchat, which are developed using the Snap Kit, which needs Snapchat’s consent.
Even though Snapchat makes sure that those apps don’t ask for any personal information from users other than the display information and the Bitmoji, not all companion apps are safe enough.
Apart from the basic block and report options, Sendit has no parental controls. It means that you would have to pay extra care when your child is using the app and put the social media controls.
Now that you’ve learned how risky Sendit can be for your kids, you must take proactive steps to protect their online safety. Here I’ve got some tips for you.
Have an honest conversation with your child and get them familiar with the risks of Sendit. Tell them how their one wrong move can land them in trouble and make them a victim of cyberbullies and predators.
Always encourage your child to share everything with you, whether it be something good or bad. Tell them to come straight to you whenever they encounter any bad person or bully while using Sendit.
If your kids are keen on using social media, make sure they know all the appropriate online behaviors. Teach them what to post and what not to, and tell them not to engage in any illegal activities or bullying on the internet. Always remind them to ‘think before posting.’
Make sure to set clear boundaries and restrictions on what they can do or not. Set some rules so they don’t stray away and end up in a compromising situation.
If you want to know every detail of your child, I recommend you install parental control apps, like Norton Family, Bark, etc., on your kid’s device. Using that, you can monitor your child’s activity 24/7 and get instant alerts when anything goes wrong.
If your kid receives any uncomfortable message from any sender, tell them how to report and block it.
Show your child that you are ready to listen to their worries, whether it’s about their personal or social life. Other than that, make sure to maintain a healthy parent-child relationship so your child can be vocal about their problems without any fear of judgment.
Although when I was a kid, I didn’t think much of social media, now, as a parent, when I think about my child falling victim to some horrendous cult on social media, I get chills.
If you are also the same, I recommend you convince your kid to stay away from Sendit. However, if your kid is set on retaliating and using the app, make sure you use the safety tips I’ve mentioned. Or you can introduce them to other safe apps that will keep them busy.
Since the minimum age to use the Sendit app is 13, it is not safe for kids.
No, a 9-year-old can’t use the Sendit app.
Yes, Sendit is an anonymous Q&A app.
No, you can’t see who sent you a Sendit. If you want to get hints about the sender, you must pay $12 a week.
