Sarahah 'Honesty App' News: Viral Application Stirs Excitement While Others Concerned It Tolerates Cyberbullying
The trending Sarahah application has gotten both positive and negative responses. While it stirs a lot of excitement, some people are also concerned that it tolerates cyberbullying.
The application's name is actually the Arabic translation for "honesty." It was created by Saudi Arabian developer Zain al-Abidin Tawfiq. The app reportedly lets people send anonymous messages to other users.
On iTunes, the developer described the app by saying: "Sarahah helps you in discovering your strengths and areas for improvement by receiving honest feedback from your employees and your friends in a private manner."
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Meanwhile on Google Play, the developer takes pride in making the app a platform to receive "constructive anonymous feedback."
In just a matter of months, Sarahah was able to overtake famous apps on the App Store such as YouTube and Instagram as it held the number 1 spot for a couple of weeks. That speaks of the fame the application was taking in at a very fast rate.
Meanwhile, the anonymity that Sarahah provides is also stirring concerns from some people as it can purportedly encourage cyberbullies and internet trolls to send hateful messages.
The clinical director of Young Adult and Family Center at the University of California, San Francisco, Christine Garcia, is one of the many people expressing concern over how the application works.
Garcia said (via Engadget): "An anonymous app can certainly increase the ability of a 'perpetrator' to bully since their identity is protected by the app." She added: "Adding an extra layer of anonymity further diminishes expected social norms and can allow bullying to occur more readily."
Developer Tawfiq also encountered criticisms directly from users, with one calling the app a "bullying platform" and described it as "cruel" and "pure evil." However, he only responded to it by reiterating the app's description as a tool for constructive feedback.
While there is an option to block other users, it is yet to be known if the developer intends to tweak the application's algorithm to detect messages that do not intend to provide constructive comments and are just plain harmful and hateful.
Messages can only be sent between users of the app that have signed up and created an account in Sarahah. The only identification used in sending and receiving text in this platform is the username.
The message recipient has the option to share or delete the message without the sender being notified. Blocking a user is also an option too. However, interestingly, replying to any message is not possible, as well as knowing the sender's real identity.
Several media outlets such as the Houston Press and Digg have recently encouraged readers to send them feedbacks using the app.
