<s>
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
is	O
a	O
pseudonymous	O
social	O
media	O
smartphone	O
application	O
that	O
initially	O
launched	O
in	O
2013	O
and	O
relaunched	O
in	O
2021	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
app	O
,	O
which	O
is	O
available	O
for	O
iOS	B-Application
and	O
(	O
formerly	O
)	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
allows	O
college	O
students	O
to	O
create	O
and	O
view	O
discussion	O
threads	O
within	O
a	O
radius	O
(	O
termed	O
"	O
Yaks	B-Protocol
"	O
by	O
the	O
application	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
similar	O
to	O
other	O
anonymous	O
sharing	O
apps	O
such	O
as	O
Nearby	O
,	O
but	O
differs	O
from	O
others	O
such	O
as	O
Whisper	B-Application
in	O
that	O
it	O
is	O
intended	O
for	O
sharing	O
primarily	O
with	O
those	O
in	O
proximity	O
to	O
the	O
user	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Failing	O
to	O
maintain	O
user	O
engagement	O
,	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
announced	O
on	O
April	O
28	O
,	O
2017	O
,	O
that	O
the	O
service	O
would	O
close	O
in	O
the	O
coming	O
week	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
$1	O
million	O
,	O
Block	O
,	O
Inc	O
.	O
(	O
formally	O
Square	O
,	O
Inc	O
.	O
)	O
,	O
purchased	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
's	O
intellectual	O
property	O
and	O
hired	O
several	O
of	O
its	O
former	O
employees	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
August	O
15	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
announced	O
via	O
their	O
official	O
website	O
that	O
they	O
were	O
making	O
a	O
comeback	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
app	O
available	O
for	O
download	O
on	O
iOS	B-Application
and	O
now	O
recently	O
available	O
on	O
Android	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
two	O
released	O
the	O
app	O
in	O
November	O
2013	O
,	O
and	O
twelve	O
months	O
later	O
,	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
was	O
ranked	O
as	O
the	O
ninth	O
most	O
downloaded	O
social	O
media	O
app	O
in	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Improvements	O
on	O
the	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
app	O
continued	O
throughout	O
2015	O
,	O
including	O
measures	O
to	O
ensure	O
its	O
sustainability	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
April	O
24	O
,	O
2017	O
,	O
in	O
a	O
Bloomberg	O
article	O
,	O
Block	O
,	O
Inc	O
.	O
(	O
formerly	O
Square	O
,	O
Inc	O
.	O
)	O
announced	O
its	O
intent	O
to	O
acquire	O
the	O
rights	O
to	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
and	O
five	O
members	O
of	O
its	O
team	O
for	O
reportedly	O
less	O
than	O
$3	O
million	O
,	O
later	O
revealed	O
to	O
be	O
closer	O
to	O
$1	O
million	O
after	O
final	O
sale	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
April	O
28	O
,	O
2017	O
,	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
announced	O
it	O
would	O
be	O
shutting	O
down	O
due	O
to	O
declining	O
popularity	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
app	O
ceased	O
to	O
function	O
as	O
of	O
May	O
5	O
,	O
2017	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
February	O
2021	O
,	O
an	O
unnamed	O
team	O
purchased	O
the	O
rights	O
to	O
the	O
YikYak	B-Application
brand	O
from	O
Block	O
,	O
Inc	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
August	O
15	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
announced	O
it	O
would	O
be	O
making	O
a	O
comeback	O
via	O
their	O
social	O
media	O
channels	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
relaunched	O
app	O
has	O
been	O
available	O
for	O
download	O
on	O
iOS	B-Application
since	O
August	O
2021	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Android	B-Application
version	O
of	O
the	O
app	O
has	O
been	O
released	O
in	O
July	O
2022	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
May	O
2022	O
,	O
a	O
student	O
revealed	O
that	O
,	O
after	O
analyzing	O
app	O
data	O
,	O
he	O
was	O
able	O
to	O
gain	O
access	O
to	O
precise	O
locations	O
of	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
September	O
14	O
,	O
2022	O
,	O
a	O
student	O
at	O
Western	O
Kentucky	O
University	O
was	O
charged	O
with	O
"	O
terroristic	O
threatening	O
"	O
after	O
posting	O
a	O
message	O
on	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
about	O
a	O
bomb	O
on	O
campus	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
September	O
18	O
,	O
2022	O
,	O
a	O
student	O
at	O
the	O
Oxford	O
College	O
of	O
Emory	O
University	O
faced	O
consequences	O
after	O
alluding	O
to	O
a	O
bomb	O
hidden	O
in	O
a	O
residential	O
hall	O
via	O
the	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
app	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
September	O
21	O
,	O
2022	O
,	O
a	O
student	O
at	O
the	O
University	O
of	O
Utah	O
was	O
arrested	O
after	O
she	O
threatened	O
to	O
detonate	O
a	O
nuclear	O
reactor	O
if	O
the	O
school	O
's	O
football	O
team	O
lost	O
their	O
game	O
via	O
the	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
app	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
October	O
21	O
,	O
2022	O
,	O
two	O
students	O
at	O
Lake	O
Stevens	O
High	O
School	O
were	O
“	O
referred	O
for	O
criminal	O
prosecution	O
”	O
after	O
making	O
a	O
bomb	O
threat	O
via	O
the	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
app	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
was	O
originally	O
funded	O
by	O
Atlanta	O
Ventures	O
with	O
offices	O
based	O
in	O
the	O
Atlanta	O
Tech	O
Village	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
funding	O
came	O
five	O
months	O
after	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
was	O
founded	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
intended	O
both	O
to	O
enhance	O
the	O
app	O
,	O
and	O
to	O
market	O
the	O
app	O
both	O
in	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
and	O
overseas	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
June	O
30	O
,	O
2014	O
,	O
a	O
little	O
over	O
two	O
months	O
after	O
the	O
initial	O
$1.5	O
million	O
,	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
secured	O
$10	O
million	O
more	O
from	O
its	O
previous	O
investors	O
,	O
together	O
with	O
new	O
investors	O
Renren	O
Lianhe	O
Holdings	O
and	O
Tim	O
Draper	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
During	O
the	O
fall	O
of	O
2014	O
,	O
with	O
exponential	O
user	O
growth	O
,	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
secured	O
over	O
$60	O
million	O
from	O
Sequoia	O
Capital	O
and	O
other	O
investors	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Less	O
than	O
one	O
year	O
after	O
its	O
launch	O
,	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
then	O
had	O
a	O
valuation	O
of	O
over	O
$350	O
million	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2021	O
,	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
announced	O
on	O
its	O
website	O
that	O
it	O
had	O
received	O
$6.25	O
million	O
in	O
seed	O
funding	O
from	O
an	O
unnamed	O
investor	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Yak	B-Protocol
:	O
A	O
shorthand	O
term	O
used	O
to	O
refer	O
to	O
a	O
post	O
on	O
the	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
app	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Yaks	B-Protocol
provide	O
the	O
main	O
function	O
of	O
the	O
app	O
,	O
and	O
can	O
be	O
up	O
or	O
downvoted	O
,	O
commented	O
on	O
,	O
and	O
shared	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Yaks	B-Protocol
are	O
limited	O
to	O
200	O
characters	O
and	O
can	O
be	O
removed	O
if	O
a	O
yak	B-Protocol
violates	O
the	O
community	O
guardrails	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
number	O
can	O
increase	O
or	O
decrease	O
based	O
upon	O
the	O
responses	O
to	O
their	O
yaks	B-Protocol
by	O
other	O
proximate	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
New	O
:	O
Features	O
new	O
yaks	B-Protocol
posted	O
within	O
5	O
miles	O
in	O
chronological	O
order	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Hot	O
:	O
Features	O
the	O
top	O
yaks	B-Protocol
posted	O
within	O
5	O
miles	O
,	O
top	O
yaks	B-Protocol
reset	O
daily	O
at	O
8pm	O
EST	O
/	O
7pm	O
Central	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Reply	O
Icons	O
:	O
User	O
anonymity	O
is	O
designed	O
into	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
conversations	O
by	O
assigning	O
the	O
Original	O
Poster	O
an	O
OP	O
icon	O
,	O
and	O
repliers	O
were	O
randomly	O
generated	O
emojis	O
,	O
while	O
in	O
the	O
original	O
application	O
was	O
limited	O
to	O
20	O
emojis	O
,	O
the	O
relaunch	O
provided	O
over	O
100	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
icon	O
follows	O
the	O
user	O
in	O
every	O
conversation	O
they	O
participate	O
in	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
user	O
has	O
the	O
possibility	O
to	O
credit	O
their	O
icon	O
to	O
a	O
yak	B-Protocol
they	O
post	O
if	O
they	O
choose	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Nationwide	O
Hot	O
:	O
This	O
feature	O
shows	O
the	O
highest	O
voted	O
yaks	B-Protocol
in	O
descending	O
order	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Upvote/Downvote	O
:	O
Up	O
and	O
down	O
votes	O
are	O
essentially	O
user	O
ratings	O
on	O
a	O
given	O
yak	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Cuss	O
Buster	O
:	O
Similar	O
to	O
the	O
word	O
filter	O
,	O
the	O
Cuss	O
Buster	O
filters	O
out	O
Yaks	B-Protocol
that	O
may	O
contain	O
inappropriate	O
language	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
Top	O
Yaks	B-Protocol
:	O
This	O
simply	O
showed	O
the	O
Google	B-Application
Images	I-Application
result	O
page	O
from	O
searching	O
the	O
word	O
"	O
yak	B-Protocol
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Usually	O
just	O
pictures	O
of	O
yaks	B-Protocol
(	O
the	O
animal	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Photos	O
:	O
This	O
feature	O
allowed	O
users	O
to	O
include	O
pictures	O
in	O
their	O
yaks	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Hidden	O
Features	O
:	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
also	O
contained	O
a	O
word	O
filter	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Campus	O
Rep	O
(	O
short	O
for	O
Campus	O
Representative	O
)	O
Program	O
was	O
announced	O
by	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
via	O
Twitter	B-Application
on	O
December	O
23	O
,	O
2021	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Campus	O
Representatives	O
,	O
also	O
called	O
Campus	O
Herders	O
,	O
are	O
students	O
at	O
a	O
college	O
or	O
university	O
who	O
find	O
and	O
post	O
Yaks	B-Protocol
from	O
their	O
respective	O
herds	O
to	O
a	O
social	O
media	O
account	O
(	O
Instagram	B-Application
,	O
TikTok	B-Application
)	O
they	O
run	O
and	O
manage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Due	O
to	O
the	O
widespread	O
bullying	O
and	O
harassment	O
committed	O
through	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
,	O
many	O
schools	O
and	O
school	O
districts	O
took	O
action	O
to	O
ban	O
the	O
app	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Tatum	O
High	O
School	O
in	O
New	O
Mexico	O
banned	O
cell	O
phone	O
use	O
from	O
the	O
school	O
due	O
to	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
,	O
and	O
the	O
Student	O
Government	O
Association	O
at	O
Emory	O
University	O
in	O
Georgia	O
attempted	O
to	O
ban	O
the	O
app	O
across	O
campus	O
,	O
but	O
failed	O
to	O
do	O
so	O
after	O
immense	O
backlash	O
from	O
students	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Students	O
at	O
Colgate	O
University	O
staged	O
a	O
three-day	O
protest	O
in	O
September	O
2014	O
substantially	O
driven	O
by	O
racist	O
messages	O
on	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
May	O
13	O
,	O
2015	O
,	O
Santa	O
Clara	O
University	O
President	O
Michael	O
Engh	O
released	O
a	O
statement	O
to	O
all	O
students	O
after	O
several	O
racist	O
remarks	O
were	O
posted	O
on	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
October	O
3	O
,	O
2014	O
,	O
The	O
Huffington	O
Post	O
published	O
an	O
editorial	O
by	O
Ryan	O
Chapin	O
Mach	O
titled	O
"	O
Why	O
Your	O
College	O
Campus	O
Should	O
Ban	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
"	O
,	O
which	O
asserted	O
that	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
's	O
anonymous	O
messaging	O
boards	O
"	O
are	O
like	O
bathroom	O
stalls	O
without	O
toilets	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Maponics	O
“	O
builds	O
and	O
defines	O
geographic	O
boundaries.	O
”	O
They	O
happened	O
to	O
already	O
have	O
nearly	O
85%	O
of	O
the	O
country	O
's	O
high	O
schools	O
mapped	O
,	O
making	O
it	O
easy	O
to	O
block	O
access	O
to	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
in	O
those	O
areas	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
If	O
the	O
app	O
is	O
opened	O
within	O
one	O
of	O
these	O
areas	O
the	O
user	O
is	O
displayed	O
a	O
message	O
along	O
the	O
lines	O
of	O
:	O
“	O
it	O
looks	O
like	O
you	O
’re	O
trying	O
to	O
use	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
on	O
a	O
middle	O
school	O
or	O
high	O
school	O
grounds	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
is	O
intended	O
for	O
people	O
college-aged	O
and	O
above	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
frequency	O
of	O
bullying	O
and	O
harassment	O
that	O
happened	O
on	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
might	O
have	O
been	O
exaggerated	O
by	O
media	O
stories	O
citing	O
specific	O
incidents	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Researchers	O
have	O
identified	O
how	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
is	O
mostly	O
used	O
as	O
a	O
positive	O
way	O
to	O
explore	O
racial	O
,	O
ethnic	O
,	O
and	O
sexual	O
identities	O
and	O
to	O
build	O
a	O
sense	O
of	O
community	O
on	O
campus	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Others	O
have	O
identified	O
how	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
gives	O
marginalized	O
students	O
a	O
voice	O
on	O
campus	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2015	O
,	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
gained	O
attention	O
by	O
being	O
the	O
subject	O
of	O
preventing	O
a	O
suicide	O
attempt	O
at	O
the	O
College	O
of	O
William	O
and	O
Mary	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
2014	O
,	O
security	O
researchers	O
discovered	O
and	O
demonstrated	O
a	O
potential	O
attack	O
on	O
the	O
service	O
,	O
where	O
a	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
user	O
could	O
have	O
their	O
account	O
compromised	O
and	O
be	O
deanonymised	O
(	O
having	O
their	O
identity	O
revealed	O
)	O
if	O
an	O
attacker	O
was	O
using	O
the	O
same	O
WiFi	O
network	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
February	O
2015	O
,	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
was	O
exposed	O
for	O
systematically	O
downvoting	O
and	O
deleting	O
posts	O
that	O
mention	O
competitors	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
downvoting	O
algorithm	O
,	O
which	O
assigned	O
downvotes	O
on	O
regular	O
intervals	O
until	O
the	O
posts	O
were	O
deleted	O
,	O
appeared	O
to	O
be	O
designed	O
to	O
mislead	O
users	O
to	O
thinking	O
that	O
their	O
posts	O
were	O
unpopular	O
amongst	O
peers	O
,	O
rather	O
than	O
censored	O
by	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
itself	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
racist	O
threats	O
were	O
posted	O
on	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
During	O
2016	O
,	O
use	O
of	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
declined	O
severely	O
,	O
by	O
76%	O
over	O
2015	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
limited	O
its	O
former	O
projected	O
growth	O
potential	O
,	O
and	O
in	O
December	O
2016	O
,	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
laid	O
off	O
60	O
percent	O
of	O
its	O
workers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
mobile	O
payment	O
operator	O
Square	O
Inc	O
purchased	O
what	O
remained	O
of	O
the	O
organization	O
for	O
$1m	O
and	O
stripped	O
the	O
company	O
of	O
its	O
assets	O
and	O
integrated	O
Yik	B-Application
Yak	I-Application
's	O
engineers	O
into	O
their	O
operations	O
.	O
</s>
