What is Sidechat? The controversial messaging app, explained

When Los Angeles Police Department officers successful riot gear arrived astatine nan University of California, Los Angeles early Thursday, nan anonymous messaging app Sidechat filled pinch posts trying to portion together what was happening: "Is everyone ok? I conscionable heard for illustration 8 bull cars spell by," 1 station read. Others shared rumors astir constabulary action and extracurricular agitators and pointed students to unrecorded streams to watch nan events unfold.

Sidechat has taken connected a caller domiciled connected assemblage campuses arsenic pro-Palestinian demonstrations and rule enforcement's consequence to them person escalated successful caller weeks. Posts connected nan app are anonymous, allowing students to stock opinions and updates freely successful a measurement they often can't connected different platforms. But Sidechat's anonymous quality has besides fueled hateful rhetoric, assemblage administrators say, raising questions astir its domiciled successful spreading section connected campuses. 

What is Sidechat?

The app launched successful 2022 and was marketed to assemblage students arsenic a integer abstraction to talk authentically astir field life. Students log successful pinch their assemblage email addresses to entree closed groups that are circumstantial to each schoolhouse — akin to Facebook erstwhile it first began arsenic a level only for students pinch ".edu" addresses. 

But 20 years aft Facebook launched, students coming are navigating a overmuch much analyzable integer scenery fraught pinch concerns astir online privacy. Just arsenic protesters deterioration masks and scarves to hide their identities astatine nan protests, anonymous apps for illustration Sidechat connection protection to posters who stock opinions connected divisive topics without having their sanction aliases moreover a username attached to their posts. 

Sidechat resembles a antecedently celebrated anonymous app called Yik Yak, which launched successful 2013 and allowed users to spot posts from group wrong a 5-mile radius. The app was banned from astatine slightest half a twelve campuses aft concerns astir bullying and harassment connected nan platform. Sidechat acquired Yik Yak successful 2023. Fizz, different anonymous app founded a twelvemonth earlier Sidechat, has besides gained fame connected assemblage campuses. 

Fear, vexation and hostility arsenic protests mount

CBS News reviewed Sidechat conversations astatine 5 schools wherever pro-Palestian protests person taken place: Columbia, Harvard, nan University of Texas astatine Austin, UCLA and New York University. While immoderate posts called connected students to subordinate nan protests, others criticized them for disrupting field life. 

However, disapproval of constabulary beingness and assemblage consequence agreed galore students. At Columbia, students expressed anger and dismay astatine nan university's determination to telephone successful nan NYPD connected Tuesday to dismantle nan encampment and clear Hamilton Hall, wherever immoderate protesters had barricaded themselves. A video of a protester tumbling down steps successful beforehand of Hamilton Hall was upvoted much than 1,600 times arsenic posters alleged constabulary utilized excessive force. 

Posts successful immoderate assemblage Sidechat groups said students were struggling to ore connected exams during nan protests. A station connected nan UT Austin chat read, "This is each very distracting for group and I deliberation everyone deserves a curve connected their finals."

Screenshot of a station by an anonymous personification connected nan University of Texas astatine Austin's Sidechat CBS News

Screenshot of a station successful Columbia student Sidechat  CBS News

Allegations of dislike connected nan platform

The anonymous quality of Sidechat has allowed for harassment and bullying, assemblage administrators and lawmakers person said. The app came nether scrutiny by nan House Committee connected Education and nan Workforce successful its ongoing investigations into really Columbia, Harvard and different universities person handled alleged incidents of antisemitism. 

In an April 17 hearing pinch nan committee, Columbia President Minouche Shafik said Sidechat was "poisonous" and that "probably nan astir egregious cases that we've seen of antisemitism, Islamophobia, racist comments person been connected societal media connected those anonymous channels."

In February, a 114-page ineligible complaint revenge connected behalf of Jewish students astatine Columbia alleged that Sidechat was utilized to harass 1 Jewish student who had removed a governmental flier from a dorm hallway. Users connected Sidechat shared her dorm room location and encouraged students to vandalize her space, nan filing says. 

In January, Harvard asked Sidechat to do much to show "concerning content" connected its schoolhouse group. According to Inside Higher Education, Sidechat assured nan schoolhouse it would mean posts to guarantee organization guidelines aren't violated. 

CBS News recovered aggregate posts crossed assemblage chats that utilized fierce aliases obscene connection to picture protesters connected some sides of nan issue.

This week, posts and comments connected Harvard's chat denied aliases made ray of nan conception that Jewish students mightiness consciousness unsafe connected campus. In a UCLA Sidechat group conversation, a student wrote that protesters were "indoctrinated sheep," while different posted that they "wish thing but nan worst for nan group successful nan encampment." Posters successful UT Austin's forum leveled akin insults astatine group taking portion successful protests.

The University of North Carolina astatine Chapel Hill, which has besides seen protests related to nan Israel-Hamas war, has blocked entree to Sidechat and akin anonymous messaging apps outright connected its field Wi-Fi aft nan president said successful February that nan apps person "shown a reckless disregard for nan wellbeing of young group and an outright indifference to bullying."

Sidechat cofounder Sebastian Gil did not respond to a petition for an interview. Gil told USA TODAY in March that Sidechat has a squad of 30 contented moderators who reappraisal and region posts that break its terms of use against contented that is threatening, violative aliases profane. The app besides warns users that posts containing students' names will beryllium deleted. 

Jui Sarwate contributed to this report.