The Risks of Providing Your Real Birthday
There are a few potential risks to providing your real birthday to Snapchat:
- It allows Snapchat to build a more complete profile of you for advertising purposes. They can target ads and recommendations better if they know personal details like your real age.
- Strangers can see your birthday if you have it set to public. This could lead to unwanted attention or messages from people you don’t know.
- There’s a small risk of identity theft if someone gets access to both your birthday and other personal information.
However, the risks are relatively minor for most Snapchat users. Snapchat likely already has a general sense of your age based on your usage patterns and interests. Letting them know your exact birth date provides marginal additional profiling value. Strangers learning your birthday also poses little meaningful threat in most cases. Still, it’s something to be aware of.
Why Snapchat Asks for Your Birthday
Snapchat requires users to provide a birthday for a few reasons:
- To confirm you are old enough to use Snapchat legally. The minimum age is 13 in most countries.
- To better understand its user base demographics.
- To enable age-gated ad targeting and content recommendations.
- To personalize certain features based on age, like suggestions of new friends or lenses.
- To send birthday notifications and reminders to your friends.
Providing an accurate birthday allows Snapchat to operate legally, improve their products, and target ads and content in a more personalized way. It has value to them as a company, which is why they require it.
Consequences of Giving a Fake Birthday
While it may be tempting to use a fake birthday, there are some downsides to consider:
- Snapchat requires users to be at least 13 years old. Using a fake birthday that’s under 13 could get your account banned.
- Some features may not work as intended. Friend suggestions, lenses, and notifications could behave oddly.
- You may see less relevant ads and content recommendations since Snapchat won’t know your real age.
- You’ll have to remember your fake birthday. Snapchat asks for it periodically to confirm, and entering the wrong birthday could lock you out of your account temporarily.
Overall, providing your real birthday leads to the best Snapchat experience. The risks are low, while using a fake birthday introduces headaches and limitations.
Privacy Settings for Your Birthday
If you do provide your real birthday, you can adjust the privacy settings:
- Make your birthday visible only to friends – This hides it from strangers but allows friends to see and send birthday wishes.
- Make your birthday fully private – This hides your birthday entirely from everyone except Snapchat.
The default setting makes your birthday visible to all Snapchat users. Changing to friends-only or private mode can limit unwanted attention from strangers.
What Age Does Snapchat Use for Ads and Recommendations?
Snapchat bases its ads and content recommendations on your exact birthdate if you provide it. Here are the age ranges it uses:
| Age Range | What Snapchat Considers You |
|---|---|
| 13-17 | Teen |
| 18-20 | Young Adult |
| 21-34 | Adult |
| 35-54 | Middle Age |
| 55+ | Mature |
If you don’t give your real birthday, Snapchat will estimate your general age range based on activity and serve broader age-based ads. But giving your exact birthdate allows more personalized, targeted recommendations.
Should You Use Your Real Birthday on Snapchat?
Reasons to Use Your Real Birthday
- Let Snapchat give you the full, intended experience customized to your age.
- Receive birthday lenses, stickers, filters, and celebratory messages from friends.
- Avoid limitations or account lockouts from using a fake underage birthday.
- View age-appropriate content and ads that may be more relevant to your interests.
Reasons to Use a Fake Birthday
- Increased privacy and anonymity from strangers.
- Avoid mildly invasive targeted advertising based on your age.
- Control perception of your age to other Snapchat users.
The Verdict
For most users, giving Snapchat your real birthday poses little meaningful privacy or security risk. The benefits of personalized content and features tend to outweigh the minor downsides.
However, teens under 18 may want to consider using a fake birthday that’s still over 13. This avoids disclosing their age to strangers in public profiles while still accessing the app.
Overall, the choice comes down to your personal privacy preferences and desire to access age-restricted content. There’s no universally “right” answer – assess your own priorities and comfort level.
Setting Your Birthday Privacy
If you do give your real birthday, be sure to check your privacy settings. Here’s how to control birthday visibility on Snapchat:
- Open your Snapchat profile and tap the settings gear icon.
- Scroll down and tap “Birthday”
- Select either “My Friends” or “Only Me” to limit visibility.
The default is public. Switching it to friends-only or private is recommended to give you greater control.
Conclusion
Snapchat’s request for your birthday is reasonable given their need for demographic data to inform ads, recommendations, and age-gated content access. While giving your real birthdate provides optimal personalization, the risks are minor and privacy can be managed via the app’s settings. For most users, the benefits outweigh potential downsides. Think carefully about your specific needs and comfort level when deciding whether to provide your actual birthday or use a fake one. Either choice is reasonable.