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Snapchat prompted outcry last week when it updated its terms of service and privacy policy.
The social networking app, which is known for messages that self-destruct upon being viewed, said that it can use content shared on its service with business partners and advertisers, specifically with regard to crowd-sourced "Live Stories" in the app.
Live stories, which center around events like the New York City marathon or Halloween, are curated by Snapchat and can generally be viewed by anyone who uses the service.
Many took Snapchat's right to use content in "any form and in any and all media or distribution methods" to mean that it was accessing and storing seemingly private messages between Snapchat users.
But Snapchat says that's not the case. The key thing to remember is there's a difference between private snaps or chats between individuals and stories, which can be public to anyone.
In a blog post on Sunday, Snapchat reiterated that "the Snaps and Chats you send your friends remain as private today as they were before the update."
Snapchat messages sent between users of the app "are automatically deleted from our servers once we detect that they have been viewed or have expired," according to the company's privacy policy.
"Of course, a recipient can always screenshot or save your Snaps or Chats," the blog post notes. "But the important point is that Snapchat is not - and never has been - stockpiling your private Snaps or Chats. And because we continue to delete them from our servers as soon as they're read, we could not - and do not - share them with advertisers or business partners."
As Tech Insider noted last week, however, Snapchat can license what you share when you willingly post to a Live Story in the app.