Getting caught taking a selfie on Snapchat is the 2013 equivalent of getting caught picking your nose. You try and be discreet but sometimes someone sees you, and you either get really embarrassed and try to cover it up, or you embrace it and keep your head high.

Snapchat isn’t new, its been in the App Store since September 2011. And just as Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram have become means of communication, so too has Snapchat.

A picture or video with a short caption can be sent to a friend for a mere few seconds. You can even draw on the photo! A quick hello. What an awesome invention! It has been received greatly by audiences, myself included. According to Snapchat's blog, over 50 million snaps are sent everyday.

But there has been talk of app misuse with the sending of inappropriate photos.  Some fear it instigates the sexting epidemic that is so talked about in the news.

I am not doubting that such photo sharing has occurred, but I don’t think that the app should be denied its credit of a successful launch as a means of communication. There will always be people who use technology in the wrong way. Misusing forms of communication has been around since the beginning of time. Look at muckraking articles in newspapers, and television debates that get heated. Hey, I bet slandering was found in cave drawings amongst the inhabitants of the Stone Age. We can’t prevent people from misusing forms of communication. What we can do is embrace what good things these advancements bring.

I am a recent graduate from college. My friends live all over the country. I don’t always have time to Skype or Facetime them, nor is it socially acceptable for me to be talking loudly on the Long Island Railroad on the early morning commute into New York City. But I can send a quick Snapchat smiling with the caption,“Have a great day, miss you!”. It's more personal than simply a text. My friend can see my face, as if I am looking straight into their eyes and speaking to them.

What I am trying to say is, I do not condone taking inappropriate pictures and sending them via Snapchat. No matter who is the recipient, you should never expose anything that you wouldn’t want to be shown to the entire Internet world. In this day and age, you need to keep yourself safe even when using technology. What I do condone is using this amazing app to keep in touch with friends and family. A picture is worth a thousand words. So Snapchat away, don’t worry about someone catching you making that ugly face!