How To Disappear Yourself with Ghost Mode on the Snapchat Map
The 2017 introduction of the Snap Map feature allowed Snapchat users to share their physical location in real time, not only with friends but, depending on their privacy settings, all other users of the platform, too. In addition, they could also access all publicly shared posts from any city or country they chose.
Of course, this feature can be useful in case of an emergency, as proven in late 2017 when it was used to document the destruction left in the wake of Hurricane Harvey. However, in this digital world where all of us want to “disappear” offline every once in a while if only for a minute, the idea of everyone knowing where you are at any given moment sounds downright creepy.
Thankfully, location sharing is an opt-in feature, which means that you can turn it on and off as you like. In this article, you will learn how.
How to Turn On Ghost Mode on the First Launch of the App
When you first download and install Snapchat on your iPhone or Android device, you will immediately have access to the Snap Map feature. Just pinch anywhere on the screen and you’ll be prompted to choose your visibility preferences. The app will offer three options:
- Ghost Mode – Only you can see yourself on your Snap maps, you will remain invisible to your friends as well as all other Snapchat users.
- My Friends – All your Snapchat friends will be able to see your location at any given moment)
- Select Friends… – This allows you to handpick the friends you want to give access to your location info. This is particularly useful if you want to share your location with, say, select friends or family members, but at the same time don’t want random acquaintances to locate you.
If you want to make your location unknown to your friends and make yourself invisible from Snapchat maps, simply tap on “Ghost Mode” and confirm by tapping on “Next”.
How to Turn On Ghost Mode from the Camera Screen
If you have decided to activate Ghost Mode after having shared your location for a while, you can do so in a similar way to the previous method. Start by pinching the camera screen to enter the Snapchat map, and then tap on the Settings (cog) icon in the top-right of the screen.
In the Settings menu, simply toggle the switch next to “Ghost Mode” to “on”, and your friends will no longer be able to see your current location on their Snap maps.
Your last shared/known location will also be hidden, so no one will know where you were when you turned on Ghost Mode. If you want to resume sharing your location, you only have to go back to the Settings menu and toggle the switch next to Ghost Mode to “off”.
How to Turn On Ghost Mode from the Snapchat Settings
If you’re scared you’re too clumsy to pinch the camera screen (you’d be surprised how many smartphone users feel this way) and don’t want to risk accidentally changing some important settings, you can also turn on Ghost Mode directly from the Snapchat Settings menu.
Here is what you need to do:
- Open Snapchat.
- Tap on your Bitmoji in the top-left corner of the screen. If you haven’t yet configured one, tap on the recognizable Snapchat icon in that same place. Fun fact: this icon is named Ghostface Chillah as a tribute to Wu-Tang Clan’s Ghostface Killah.
- Tap on the Settings icon.
- In the Settings menu, under “Who Can…”, tap on “See My Location”.
- In the My Location menu, toggle the switch next to “Ghost Mode” to “on”.
As with the previous method, anytime you want to turn off Ghost Mode and resume sharing your location with your friends, you only have to follow steps 1-4 and then toggle the switch to “off” in step 5.
Who Can See Your Location When You Turn Off Ghost Mode?
When you decide to turn off Ghost Mode and make your location visible once again, the location sharing settings will be the same as they were before you turned on the Ghost Mode. As such, if you chose the option “My Friends” before, it will once again be automatically selected.
If you only used to make your location visible to select friends, it is important to note that Snapchat will remember those exact friends. That way, when you make yourself visible again, you won’t have to recreate the list from scratch.
To Be or Not to Be Invisible
Do you share your location on Snapchat? If so, who do you share it with? Has making your location visible on your Snap Map ever got you in an unpleasant situation?
Share your experiences in the comments below.