What Does the Lock Symbol Mean on Snapchat Stories?

Have you ever come across a purple lock on someone’s story on Snapchat? and wondered what does the lock symbol mean on Snapchat stories? If yes, then read this post to understand what the purple lock on peoples’ stories means on Snapchat. You’ll also get to know about the grey lock and why it appears in the rest of the stories! Therefore, if you’re interested, continue scrolling and begin reading!

What Does the Lock Symbol Mean on Snapchat Stories?

While going through Snapchat, you might have come across a story that has a purple lock on it. Don’t worry; this has nothing to do with your account. A purple lock on anyone’s story means that it is a private story. ‘Private stories’ are a new feature that was introduced to maintain privacy and give more control to the user by selecting the audience for their stories.

Initially, in the absence of this feature, users had to block people to prevent them from viewing their stories. This procedure is a little complicated since you’ll have to unblock them later. Therefore, private stories are considered an easy alternative in this regard.

A private story is only sent to those individuals that you select. An entire group can be created, and specific stories can be sent to only these users. Such a story will portray a purple lock icon to any user who receives it. Private stories are a great way to post the content we want without worrying about a specific set of people who follow us on Snapchat. The purple padlock makes the viewer aware that what they’re viewing is a private story, unlike the regular stories, which are usually posted. 

Reasons to post a private story on Snapchat

As mentioned above, the private story feature gives the user better control of the audience that sees these videos and photos. Therefore, private stories are a great way to limit your audience or increase it as per your preference. Following are a few reasons why you must check out this feature:

• If you are a brand and you have a specific target audience.
• If you want to post a snap to very close friends of yours.
• If you would like to post a snap that is specific to a particular fan base.
• If you want to share private details of your life with specific people.

Now that you have enough reasons to post a private story, let us look at how you can do so!

How to post a private story on Snapchat?

The good news is that you do not have to limit the number of people that can see your private story. Only the users that you select will be able to view the story. Once you post the story, a purple lock will accompany the icon. This will notify them that it is a private story that they are viewing. At present, the user can make up to 10 private stories. To create a private story, follow the given steps:

1. Launch the Snapchat application on your phone and tap on your profile picture.

2. From the menu that is now displayed, go to Stories and tap on ‘Private Story’.

3. Your friend list will now be displayed. You can select the users that you want to include. Once done, tap on ‘Create a Story’.

4.  You will then be shown a text box in which you can enter the name of the story that you will now post.

5. Now, you can create the story. It can be a photo or a video. Once done, you can tap on the Send to at the bottom.

6. You can now select the private group that you have just created and tap ‘Post’. Once you post the story, all your friends included in this private group will see a purple lock on your story’s icon.

In the past few years, Snapchat has become one of the most popular social media platforms. A massive group of people uses it. As user input increases, several new features keep launching. Therefore, private stories came out as a feature that provided the user with more control over the audience that viewed the content.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q1.How do you put a lock on your Snapchat story?

To put a lock on your Snapchat story, you have to create a private group. After creating the group, you are supposed to send your snap to this group. This will be termed as a private story. Every private story has a purple-coloured lock around its icon.

Q2.How does a private Snapchat story work?

A private Snapchat story is just like a regular story. However, it is sent only to a few specific users of your choice.

Q3. How is the private story different from a custom story?

Custom stories are very different from private stories. In custom stories, your friends can interact with the story. On the other hand, private stories do not have this option. Hence, they are two different things.

Q4. Does posting a private story on Snapchat notify the users? 

No, notification is not sent to the users when you post a private story. A private story is just like a regular story; it’s just for specific friends on your list. This is why neither your friends in the group nor outside it are informed. 

Q5. How long do these stories last?

One might think that private stories are different from the stories that we normally upload. They are actually not. In terms of time duration, they are precisely the same as normal stories. The private stories last for only 24 hours, after which they disappear.

Q6. Can you view the other viewers of a private story?

The most straightforward answer to this question is- no. Only the person who has made this private group can view the list of the users in this group. You cannot view the other users who have been included in this particular group.

Q7. Why do some stories display a grey lock?

While going through your stories, you might have seen a grey lock apart from a purple lock. This grey lock means that you have viewed the story already. It is similar to the colour of the ring that appears around the story icon. A new story is enclosed in a blue circle, but it becomes grey when you tap on it. It’s only a colour marking that lets you know that you’ve viewed the story.

Recommended:

• What Does Pending Mean On Snapchat?
• How to Make a List on Snapchat for Streaks
• 7 Ways to Fix Email Stuck in Outbox of Gmail
• What happens when you Block Someone on Snapchat?

We hope that this guide was helpful and you were able to understand the meaning of the lock symbol on Snapchat Stories. If you still have any queries regarding this article, then feel free to ask them in the comments section.