What is Bitmoji – Can you use it safely?

Emojis are a core part of online social interactions. They help users to express themselves and explain mood better than text alone cannot. The use of emojis is so astounding that it’s almost impossible to think of social chats without them. Bitmoji rode this hightide swiftly and became one of the well-known emoji platforms that socialites love to use. But, is Bitmoji safe to use? Let’s find out.

Bitmoji started as Bitstrips – a website where you could put yourself in digital comics using an avatar. Safe to say that it was a hit. It let you customize facial features to make an avatar that resembles you in real life. Because of its growing popularity, Bitstrips was launched as a separate app that focused on avatar customization only. It was later acquired by social media giant Snapchat, which has integrated Bitmoji into the platform.

But with any app that deals with user data, there are always privacy concerns, especially when the data is the user’s face.

How Does Bitmoji Work?

As we mentioned earlier, Bitmoji was spun into a separate app dedicated to creating avatars and was acquired by Snap Inc. The app still functions independently, but as a Snapchat user, you can link Bitmoji to the platform and create 3D avatars based on your appearance. Moreover, Snapchat even introduced augmented reality to Bijmoji, making it possible for you to bring avatars to your living space.

Once you have the app on your phone, simply launch Bitmoji from your Snapchat account and let it customize for you. It will bring out your avatar’s expressions that you can then use as your Snapchat profile picture.

Snapchat aside, the app functions as a dedicated platform; the option to use it outside of Snapchat is possible. A smart move on Snap Inc’s part because Bitmoji is popular on the iOS keyboard and Google keyboard.

What does Bitmoji collect from you?

When you grant Full Access to Bitmoji, you’re giving Snap Inc. permission to collect and use much of your personal data. The details of what information they gather are laid out in Bitmoji’s Privacy Policy, which curiously redirects to Snapchat’s Privacy Policy despite being distinct apps.

To use the service, you must provide standard registration details such as your unique login credentials, phone number, email address, and date of birth. Any customizations you make to your Bitmoji will also be shared with Snap Inc.

Bitmoji also keeps track of how you use the app by collecting information about your device, location, Bitmoji sending activity, and content viewed. It can even get to your phonebook, camera, photos, cookies, and other information that is unique to your device. If you use Bitmoji, Snap Inc. could learn a lot about you.

Moreover, Snap Inc. collects data through user profiling from third-party sources they’re affiliated with. Unfortunately, it’s unclear what kind of data they collect or who these third-party sources are.

However, it’s essential to understand the scope of the personal information you’re sharing when using Bitmoji or any other app, and to make sure you’re comfortable with the level of access you’re granting before providing your data.

Is Bitmoji Safe to Use?

The burning question is whether Bitmoji safe to use. Any service or app providing access to some sort of functionality and dealing with user data has a privacy policy that outlines how and what data it collects. That’s where we need to start looking.

Emojis are part of the virtual keyboard that pops up on your screen. As such, the Bitmoji app requires access to the keyboard so that you can quickly access the personalized avatars during conversations. What may seem like harmless access permission is potentially dangerous.

The virtual keyboard on our phones often holds sensitive information like home address, phone number, and keywords that rest in the predictive dictionary, not to mention the items your clipboard holds. iOS warns you of the same risks when try to give Bitmoji access to the platform.

“Full access allows the developer of this keyboard to transmit anything you type, including things you have previously typed with this keyboard. This could include sensitive information such as your credit card number or street address.”

Bitmoji answers that in a dedicated page that discloses that the “Bitmoji Keyboard can’t read or access anything you type using your iPhone keyboard or any other third party keyboard”. So, why does it need access to the keyboard? Because the keyboard holds the stickers and Bitmoji needs access to download your personalized avatars from its servers.

While the permissions and the associated warning is understandable, things don’t make as much sense on the Android side. Bitmoji on Android requires the following permissions from you:

• Contacts
• Camera
• Microphone
• Wi-Fi connection information
• Photos/Media/Files
• Phone
• Identity
• Storage
• Device ID & call information
• Device & app history
• Other

Some of these permissions are very suspicious for an app that only needs work on the virtual keyboard. For example, requiring access to contacts is out of the bounds of the app’s functionality.

However, things make sense when you take a holistic view of Bitmoji’s association with its parent company Snap Inc, things make sense. Bitmoji is governed by the Privacy Policy of Snap Inc.; it doesn’t have its own. A lot of the permissions that it’s asking are probably basing on the assumption that you will one day use Snapchat, even though Bitmoji works independently. Because if you look at the permissions that Snapchat asks, they are almost identical.

Snap Inc. generates revenue through advertising, which means it needs to gather certain details about you to ensure the ads it displays are relevant. This includes information such as the type of device you’re using, as well as your behavior while using its services. By collecting data on your interests and preferences, Snap Inc. can show you ads that are more likely to interest you. For example, if you frequently use Bitmoji to create fun cartoon versions of yourself, Snap Inc. might show you ads for other creative apps or services.

While this can be convenient, it’s important to understand that the information you share with Snap Inc. is also being used to target ads toward you. It’s up to you to decide whether or not the tradeoff of sharing your data for a more personalized experience is worth it.

Should You Worry About Anything?

There is always a persisting risk when you allow any service access to your data. Social media platforms are known to collect troves of data – even cross-site – to market the advertisers using the platforms. There is no definitive answer here because Snap Inc. hasn’t been under a privacy scandal originating from data collected through Bitmoji.

When it comes to privacy, everyone has different levels of concern. It’s worth noting that Bitmoji doesn’t have its own privacy policy, which can make it challenging to know precisely what data it’s collecting. However, the app states that it can’t see what you’re typing or access other information on your device, which is somewhat reassuring.

Despite this, it’s always a good idea to be cautious when using messaging or social media apps like Bitmoji. Using a Virtual Private Network (VPN) can add an extra layer of protection to your data and help keep your online activities private. Whether or not you decide to use a VPN, it’s important to be aware of what data you’re sharing and how it’s being used to make informed decisions about your privacy.

iProVPN offers the best security features for online privacy and protection. It’s better to encrypt your connection than to leave the door open to cyberattacks.