Hoop App: What Parents Need to Know

Hoop is a companion app designed to help teens find and add new friends on Snapchat by swiping through profiles of other users their age. The app encourages quick connections, uses gamified features like “diamonds” to request new friends, and makes it easy to expand a teen’s social circle beyond people they already know. For parents, it’s important to understand how this exposure to strangers, profile browsing, and in-app messaging requests can increase privacy and safety risks.

Educators and parents: Guide your students' reflection and discussion with this student worksheet (Log in to your Google account and select File-->Make a Copy)

What is Hoop?

• Hoop is a social app that helps users meet new people and “make friends” from their own country or globally
• Users must connect their Snapchat account during setup; without a Snapchat account, users cannot create a profile
• Hoop uses a virtual currency called “Diamonds.” Users need diamonds to request to connect with someone
• To make friends, users “swipe” through others' profiles, similar to how dating apps work. When users swipe yes mutually, they are given Snapchat usernames to communicate
• Users must enter a birthdate when creating a profile, but no other age verification is required
• Users 13-17 are given a teen account, meaning they can only connect with other teens

Top Concerns of Hoop

• Exposure to inappropriate or explicit content due to a lack of monitoring for profile pictures
• Without appropriate age verification requirements, strangers can easily pose as teens and gain information to a teen’s Snapchat account 
• Hoop does not offer any parental controls 
• Cyberbullying, harassment, or manipulation, especially once conversations move off Hoop and onto other platforms like Snapchat

What can parents do?

• Discuss the risks of accepting “friends” from people they don’t know in real life
• Ensure that teens are using their correct birthday when creating an account
• Encourage not sharing any private information, even other social media accounts
• Monitor the images used on profiles regularly, as they are not monitored by Hoop itself

What is Hoop rated?

Additional info: Based in France, Owned by Dazz‍

Apple App Store Rating: 13+‍

Google Play Rating: T (Teen)

Why do students want to be on Hoop?

• Hoop offers students the ability to make more Snapchat friends and connect with others globally
• The opportunity to earn “diamonds” creates a game-like experience
• Teens can reach a wider range of others their age with similar interests

Hoop App in the News

The app has been described as Tinder for teens, because the format closely resembles the dating app in the way it invites users to either swipe right or reject potential matches. - Plugged In

Conclusion

Hoop can seem like an easy way for teens to meet new friends, but its design also exposes them to strangers, unfiltered content, and unreliable age information. Because the app pushes users to exchange social-media usernames and continue conversations on platforms with little oversight, parents have limited visibility into who their child is talking to. Combined with weak age verification and no parental controls, the risks are important to consider. Understanding these factors can help families decide whether Hoop is a safe fit for their teen.

‍More resources for parents, students, & educators

What is Tinder? Parent App Guide | SmartSocial.com

‍Yubo App Guide by SmartSocial.com

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