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The Snapchat multimedia messaging app is ditching the “speedometer” filter that allows users to share how fast they are moving by taking a photo through the app, multiple media outlets have confirmed. The controversial filter introduced by Snap Inc. in 2013 had received huge criticism for encouraging reckless driving behavior.
The “speed filter” is linked to several injuries and fatalities. The drivers involved in these crashes were traveling at high speed in order to brag about the app. Snapchat has also faced numerous lawsuits from families whose members have been victims of reckless speeding.
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While confirming the removal of the filter on NPR, a Snapchat spokesperson did not acknowledge the security concerns surrounding the feature. Instead, she said the filter was removed from the social media app because it was no longer used by Snapchat users. She added that removal of the filter has started but it could take a few weeks for it to be completely removed from her community of 500 million monthly active users.
Critics of the filter and proponents of safe driving hailed Snapchat’s decision, but also stressed that the past damage cannot be reversed. “Lives will be saved. Accidents will be avoided, but… why did it take so long? Joel Feldman, co-founder of End Distracted Driving – one of the groups that urged Snapchat to remove the filter – told NPR.
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Among the many accidents related to the “speed filter”, one occurred in 2015 when a vehicle collision involving the speed filter left the driver in Georgia with permanent brain damage. In 2016, five people in Florida were pronounced dead after a high-speed collision that allegedly involved the speed filter.
As a result of these reports and lawsuits, Snapchat attempted to reduce the importance of the filter by converting it to a “sticker” in Snapchat. It also added a “Do not hook and drive” warning that appeared every time someone used the feature. The company also quietly capped the maximum speed at which a message could be shared. However, the filter was still available until now.
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