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flicks

By Alex North

The newest version of Unseen will make your school's feed look like something out of Harry Potter! In addition to introducing an option to easily create attractive text-based posts, users now have the ability to capture 5-frame, looping images. The result is something like a gif that plays forwards and backwards. We call them Flicks, and they're pretty flicking sweet.

Flicks capture the subtle movements and textures of what's going on around you. Shot correctly, they preserve small gestures, expressions, and atmospheric elements that convey the living pulse of the moment.

It's been less than 36 hours since the release, and Unseen users have already filled the feed with neat and entertaining Flicks. Scrolling through Unseen has never been more action-packed, and the images shared have never been more palpable. Food and drink looks ready to eat. Humor and creativity sparkle. And the backdrop of day-to-day activites comes to life.

Download the latest version of Unseen to get Flicks! Available on iOS and Android.

#unseen app #flicks #update #gifs

how-we-keep-our-users-unseen-2

By Alex North

Few inventions have ever changed the course of daily life to the extent that the internet has, and will continue to do. As more and more of our everyday activities take place online, in order for the web to remain

open, transparent, and safe for everyone

, the rights and wellbeing of the public must also translate to the digital world. Celebrated annually on January 28,

Data Privacy Day

is an international effort that aims to educate consumers about the way their personal information is digitally collected and shared, empowering the public to hold the products they use to high privacy standards. Given the amount of high profile hackings that have made headlines recently, the relevance of this campaign is potent. How many apps, websites, and devices do you use on a daily basis? What do they know about you? How securely do they store your information? What could leak if a hacker found a security vulnerability?

In our pursuit to offer our users a secure and anonymous platform, we’ve considered these questions carefully. There are a lot of products that claim to offer their users anonymity, but there is also a growing suspicion among the public that nothing on the web is truly anonymous. Some platforms may obscure your identity from other users, but still require that you give them your geolocation, Facebook credentials, or phone number in order to use the service. When faced with a subpoena, a hacker, or surveillance, the only platforms that are truly anonymous are the ones that never have any personal information to begin with. So what do we mean when we say that Unseen is anonymous? We mean that we collect and store as little data about you and your device as possible. We don’t know who you are, and if you’re smart about it, we couldn’t find out even if we really wanted to. If complete and total anonymity appeals to you, the following information will help you understand what we collect so you can ensure that your identity is completely safe.

What we collect:

You don’t ever have to provide any personal information to use Unseen, but we need some data in order for you to have the same experience every time you open the app. We create and store a unique authentication token for your device, which allows you to have the same icon within a given thread, to access your notification history, and to communicate with other users over direct messaging.

How we keep it safe:

We don’t just take this information and store it on our servers where it could potentially be hacked, court ordered, or sold to advertisers. In order to keep you anonymous, Unseen encrypts your authentication token with a one-way hash. This gives us an internal value that we can use to provide you with a unified experience, but that is completely useless in terms of tracking it back to your device.

What we never see:

Every communication exchanged via

direct messaging is encrypted

and decrypted only at the device level. This means that the only two people with a key that can access a direct message are the sender and recipient. We at Unseen can’t read or see anything you send, and neither could anyone who broke into our server or intercepted a message in transit. As an extra layer of protection, all direct messages self-destruct after 24 hours.

What this means for you:

No one could ever use your encrypted information to link your content back to your device, but the public feed is viewable by anyone who has downloaded Unseen

.

If you routinely post photos of your own face, or go around giving out your name, phone number, or social media handles in the comments, then you’re not really being anonymous. Leave enough identifying breadcrumbs on the public feed, and anyone viewing the feed may be able to guess who you are through context clues. If keeping your identity completely concealed is important to you, then you should refrain from posting any kind of identifying information to the public feeds. The most secure place to do that is over direct messaging.

#dpd15 #data security #unseen app

acts-of-kindness

By Alex North

“The person who works for recognition devalues the work he does… altruism’s true name is always Anonymous.”

― David Marusek

If you’ve ever declined to share something on social media for fear that it would come off as self-promotional, you’re familiar with the dilemma of altruism in a highly connected age. True acts of kindness ask for no recognition, so to create a Facebook status announcing the super nice thing you just did for someone else would make the charitable deed feel less genuine. Perhaps you simply want to inspire compassion in others, but the moment you willingly attach your name to your magnanimous act, it’s no longer so selfless. Where your public image is so intricately tied to your online profiles, social media and altruism can seem irreconcilable.

If the whole point of social media is supposed to be connecting people, buzzwords like cyber-bullying, slacktivism, humblebrag, and selfie can make that hard to believe. We can all think of ways that social technology enables the narcissist in all of us; but is it possible to use social media to publicly share good deeds and inspire kindness in others without laying personal claim to that good karma?

Below are a few examples of times when people used the anonymity of Unseen in the name of kindness and compassion. Free from the stifling conventions of a public identity and network, anonymity helps connect people who could use some help to those who are willing to offer it.

#unseen #altruism #anonymity #acts of kindness #social media #unseen app

Sometimes anonymity and safety just don't combine. Unseen hopes to prove otherwise.

#@dailydot #jared wynne #anonymity #unseen #press #unseen app

buckeyes-win-championship

By Alex North

Last night the Ohio State University football team did what almost nobody believed they would. After a season of seemingly decisive injuries, embarrassing lows, and, by turns, soaring successes, the Buckeyes overpowered the heavily-favored Oregon Ducks to become the

National Champions

.

The event was the

most watched program in ESPN history

, but given that the pre-game media buzz suggested a blowout in favor of the Ducks, it’s easy to see how the Buckeyes’ season leading up to the Championship game could go unappreciated. Prior to their win, some even questioned

whether Ohio State deserved to make it

to the end at all. Here at the Unseen office, we’re always eager to share behind-the-scenes photos taken by unnamed student athletes who use the app. Back in December, we tweeted this photo posted to the Ohio State Unseen feed after a sensational 59-0 win against the Wisconsin Badgers:

And when the Ohio State team was sent on their way to the championship game in Arlington, we started seeing more photos of the athletes: in their hotel rooms, in meetings, in the locker rooms, even out on the field. Thanks to an anonymous Buckeye, Unseen users got a truly personal look at game day for the team.

But these photos go back further than the bowl season. After scrolling through months of content in OSU’s Unseen feed, we found that this anonymous athlete (athletes?) had been posting photos of the team since the start of football season. In case you weren’t paying attention to the Buckeyes until they made the Championship (hey, we’re guilty of this too!), take a moment to review their winning season through the eyes of those who lived it.

With the Buckeyes on their way back to Columbus now, we're looking forward to watching the celebrations.

#ohio state #college football #national champions #unseen app

the-unseen-world-of-daydreamers

By Alex North

“A daydream is a meal at which images are eaten.“

—W.H. Auden

Artists have long turned to the beauty of the world around them to stimulate their creativity, but it doesn't always take a brilliant sunset or an aerial view to spark the imagination. Daydreamers know that even the mundane backdrop of day-to-day life can inspire fantastical departures. If you've ever spent an entire lecture doodling, or mapped out the popcorn constellations of your bedroom ceiling, then you'll recognize the whimsical impulses of these anonymous students at UT Chattanooga and Texas State. Taking a simple photo of the world before them as seen by all, they creatively insert their own unseen vision.

#ut chattanooga #texas state #daydreaming #unseen app

favorite-characters-2014

By Alex North

For better or worse, you never forget the people you meet during your first semester of college. As 2014 draws to a close, we want to take a moment to salute a few of the memorable characters who have helped kick off Unseen's freshman year. We chose these five characters not simply because we think there's something unique about the anonymous people behind them, but also because they are undeniably products of their own campuses, feeding off the energy of the college communities of which they are a part.

#unseen app #happy new year #kennesaw state #texas a&m #university of central oklahoma #university of central florida #louisiana state

holidays2014

Happy holidays from our family, to yours.

Feed your Christmas spirit with a selection of some of our favorite posts of the season:

#merry christmas #unseen app

Through a partnership of parental guidance and corporate responsibility, there can be places for kids to express themselves freely and to try out versions of themselves that they can’t try out when all eyes are on them.

#huffington post #unseen app #digital citizenship #diana graber

how-to-cope-with-finals

How to cope with your impending doom finals: advice from anonymous Unseen users.

By Alex North

It all happened so quickly. One moment you were blissfully enjoying your life as a student, then before you knew it, you were teetering on the edge of a great abyss.

All around you, your peers are becoming zombies. Even more chilling is the realization that you could be next.

“How did I end up here?” you ask yourself. “How will I possibly survive?”

Take a deep breath, young scholar. Just like countless other students before you, you will make it to the end of the semester. Here are a few examples of how anonymous students in the United States and Canada are coping with exams.

#unseen #finals #finals had me like #Unseen app

New photo messaging app Unseen thinks the road to success should be anonymous and go through the country’s most active universities and colleges.

#unseen #venture beat #tom cheredar #press #unseen app

lsu-election

By Alex North, reporting from Unseen HQ

Last night in Louisiana State University’s Unseen, photos began to circulate that suggest Mayor Snail’s engagement in an extra-marital and inter-species affair with a poodle. With the mayoral election scheduled for this Friday, Nov. 21, the news has incited speculation as to whether the incumbent will be reelected.

The mayor initially denied the allegations of infidelity made by a private investigator, unintentionally prompting his spurned lover to come forth with confirmation that the she and Mayor Snail had indeed been romantically involved.

The cuckqueaned Mrs. Snail has since hired a lawyer and is moving forward with divorce proceedings, fighting for full custody of their children and the majority of her husband’s fortune.

Representing Mrs. Snail is Attorney Rabbit, who yesterday addressed the public with the statement: “I will make it my mission to destroy what’s left of Mayor Snail’s political career and ensure that Mrs. Snail receives reparations for the years of neglect and emotional abuse he has subjected her to.”

Despite having only one term as Mayor under his belt, the eloquent and charismatic mollusc had won great popularity among his constituents, instituting policies to improve the quality of LSU’s Unseen.

Some citizens feel that this personal act of treachery could make the mayor ethically unfit to hold office. The polls suggest, however, that the majority of the public feels that Mayor Snail’s private infidelities do not necessarily influence his effectiveness as a political leader.

“There is a distinction between politics and personal life,” a concerned citizen going by Blue Rocket stated. "Mayor Snail is a fine political leader but obvi [sic] a terrible husband.”

The political controversy sparked by the incriminating photos has encouraged other Unseen politicians who previously did not stand a chance against the well-loved incumbent to step up their campaigns for Friday’s mayoral election.

One such candidate is the hitherto unknown Dr. Sphincternoodle. The candidate has vocally condemned the mayor’s infidelities since they came to light, calling the incumbent “a third rate political candidate with lousy morals and incompetent employees.”

Mayor Snail, however, does not appear to feel threatened by the emergence of political rivals. Following Sphincternoodle’s demand that he resign from office, the mayor issued a statement making clear that he had no intention of stepping down and mocking his opponent for campaigning beside a roll of toilet paper.

Voting opens Friday, Nov. 21 at 8am CST and closes at midnight. Unseen will be live-tweeting coverage of Friday's election under the hashtag #LSUmayor2014. Watch for developments on Unseen’s official Twitter, @GetUnseen.

#unseen #LSUmayor2014 #unseen app

private-messaging

We're excited to announce that we’ve launched a new version of Unseen for iOS! Not only have we given the app a sleek new makeover, but this new version features its own direct messaging component that extends our commitment to privacy to include secure, user-to-user communication.

Until now, Unseen consisted only of content posted publicly. We saw tremendous growth with this version, and learned a lot about how people communicate in anonymous settings. Something pretty exciting we noticed was that users eagerly embraced anonymity as a means to meet new people, using Unseen as a launch pad to start conversations with others in the hopes of sparking ongoing contact. When it came time to take the conversation off the public feed, users would usually exchange Snapchat or Kik handles, sometimes even phone numbers.

We loved that people were using Unseen to meet new people, but this brought about some security concerns. In order to protect our users’ identities and preserve the anonymous nature of Unseen, we encrypt all the information that we receive about users’ devices so that nothing posted to the public feeds can ever be traced back to an individual — not by the police, not by a hacker, not even by an Unseen employee. From a technology standpoint, our public feed is completely secure. The public exchange of identifying information, however, could leave users vulnerable.

With the new version of Unseen, we wanted to expand on this social discovery dimension without compromising our commitment to anonymity. The updated version allows the OP to send private, disappearing messages to users who comment on their photo. Commenters within the same thread can also exchange messages. So now, if users decide they want to swap phone numbers, they can do this over private messaging instead of posting it publicly.

But just how private is private messaging on Unseen?

In this handy and comprehensive scorecard, The Electronic Frontier Foundation reviews a series of platforms that feature direct messaging. The scorecard breaks down seven key cryptography components a product can utilize to keep its users’ messages secure, evaluating both widely-used and up-and-coming communication technologies according to how many of these security processes they employ.

This scorecard provides a lucid and transparent framework with which to understand the technology of privacy, one that could help empower the public to hold the products they use to higher privacy standards. In the interest of transparency, we felt that this framework would be a helpful starting place for Unseen users who may have questions about the security of their messages.

Here's how direct messaging on Unseen scores:

Is your communication encrypted in transit?

Yes! Photos and messages are encrypted on the sender’s device and never decrypted until they reach the recipient. Should a message be intercepted in transit, it would be unreadable.

Is your communication encrypted with a key the provider doesn't have access to?

Yes! The key that can decode an encrypted message is generated and stored ONLY by the sender and recipient. Our server does not hold any of these keys, so if our server was ever breached, the messages stored there would be unreadable.

Can you independently verify your correspondent's identity?

Yes! While there is no built-in function for users to verify their correspondent’s identity (this is an anonymous app, after all), no person or third-party application could sit between a sender and recipient because they wouldn’t be able to access the necessary keys.

Are past communications secure if your keys are stolen?

Yes! All private messages self-destruct after 24 hours and each conversation generates a new set of keys.

Is the code open to independent review?

Is the crypto design well-documented?

Has there been an independent security audit?

While our specific code has not been documented for the purpose of review at this time, it’s something we're interested in for the future. The newest version of Unseen is a sort of Frankenstein’s monster of best practices that are widely embraced by professional cryptographers, and we owe a lot to the community of developers who contribute their expertise to the expanding pool of public knowledge about privacy on the web. As Unseen continues to grow, we want to chip into this conversation wherever we can.

Now go forth with this knowledge and start some conversations! We’ll keep your messages safe.

#unseen #electronic frontier foundation #unseen app #encryption #encrypted messaging

okstate-letter

There are moments of clarity in the life of a company that force it to examine its status quo, and choose to either grow beyond it or accept what is as good enough.

Last week, members of Oklahoma State University’s Theta Mu chapter of Delta Sigma Theta sorority were harassed by racist slurs written anonymously on our app. When these painful circumstances came to our company’s attention, we already knew that we had work to do in order to make Unseen a constructive and inclusive platform. But the courage of those young women who spoke out against the bigotry they experienced at the hands of their peers has inspired a renewed sense of purpose around that work.

Our mission as a company is to solve problems by connecting people. This has been at the heart of every product we’ve ever created, and Unseen is no exception.

Those who have come of age in a post-Facebook era have grown acclimated to living in the shadow of their own digital footprint. We developed Unseen out of the conviction that mass communication can never be truly free and open if the public does not have avenues of total privacy. In creating an anonymous space built upon an unwavering commitment to privacy, we hope to provide a platform where users can express themselves and connect with their community in ways they may never be in a position to do otherwise.

But in this pursuit of a more sincere and connected world, our responsibility to our users must extend beyond merely creating an anonymous platform. If Unseen provides the freedom of anonymity, then we must be aware that there are better and worse (or at least less mature) uses of that freedom. While many users have leveraged the platform in rich, creative, and thought-provoking ways, others have opted to use it to reproduce the ubiquitous, “edgy” fluff that is unfortunately common in anonymous, online mediums.

While we have a moderation system in place that puts a floor on content that’s needlessly graphic, explicit, or offensive, the presence of such material points to a larger issue.

Material that is offensive for its own sake ultimately reveals nothing genuine about the person who posted it. The superficiality of this kind of content is surpassed only by its effectiveness in shutting down any possibility of meaningful connection or exchange. It is a tactic of someone who’d rather play up someone else’s insecurities than be real about their own.

Over the coming months, the fundamental question we seek to address is how to create a system that expands our users’ conception of what the freedom of anonymity might mean, and how to use that freedom creatively; how to build a place where it really can be safe to make mistakes, ask questions, and speak candidly; how to foster dialogue that inspires users to consider perspectives that may never have occurred to them otherwise, and to share their own perspectives in turn.

Our company will continue to make improvements to the systems and processes that aim to make Unseen a place where anyone can hang out and be who they are. It’s an exciting challenge, and we’re eager to take it on.

And finally, to the extraordinary young women of Theta Mu, we want to say thank you. We needed the wake up call. We’ll do our best to get it right.

#unseen #oklahoma state university

Unseen, the new anonymous photo sharing app is specially designed for use on college campuses. Unseen went live at UTC in September and has seen rapid growth despite having been available for a short time. The app is available for free download on Andriod and iOS devices. The Echo had an opportunity to interview the co-founder and CEO of Unseen, Michael Schramm.

#unseen #unseenapp #UTC #Tennessee #press

We believe that Unseen should be an honest reflection of the community it serves — racism, sexism, homophobia and all. But just as anonymity makes people feel safe to say hurtful and bigoted things, it also empowers people to speak up against hate.

#murray state #unseen #unseen app #letter to the editor #press

In the day and age of social-network powerhouses such as Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, new social networks are popping up to challenge the status quo.

#unseen #unseen app #central florida future #ucf #press

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