Hoop - App Safety Warning | SafeScreens

Why Hoop Is a Concern

Hoop is built to turn strangers into Snapchat friends. It combines:

Swipe-style browsing of profiles from your country or worldwide
Friend requests based on a photo and a few details
A one-tap way to share a Snapchat or TikTok account

How Hoop Works

Child creates a profile with a date of birth and photos
Child browses other profiles and sends friend requests
When a request is accepted, they can show each other their social links
The conversation moves to Snapchat or TikTok
Hoop's diamonds (earned daily or bought) pay for extra requests and profile perks

What Hoop Says It Does for Teens

According to Hoop's parent guide (updated December 2025), users aged 13-17 are kept separate from adults, cannot chat or receive messages inside Hoop, and have private profiles by default. That's a real improvement. The gap is that the age is whatever your child, or anyone else, types in at sign-up. There is no ID check, so an adult who enters a teen birthday lands in the teen pool.

Where the Conversation Goes

Once a stranger has your child's Snapchat username:

They talk where Hoop's teen protections no longer apply
Snapchat messages disappear by default
A friend added this way can see whatever your child shares with friends

What To Do If Found

Remove Hoop
Check Snapchat - Go through your child's friends list together
Remove unknown contacts - Anyone your child doesn't know in real life
Talk it through - A friend found by swiping is still a stranger
Tighten Snapchat settings - Restrict who can contact your child and who can add them as a friend