Sara M. Lyons, a California-based illustrator and designer, has accused Snapchat of ripping off her design for one of its filters. The design in question, a pair of hands making the “whatever” sign, was a filter available to some users last night and this morning.
Lyons points out on Twitter that although her original design is fairly simple, the finger placement in Snapchat’s filter (above) and her own illustration (below) is very similar. Lyons says Snapchat’s filter looks like a traced and flipped version of her illustration.
before it was anything else it was just a drawing i did in february 2013. i coined the phrase, i hold the copyright, IT’S MINE. pic.twitter.com/oJbPL3iIiF
— SARA M. LYONS (@saramlyons) May 31, 2017
“I had about a dozen DMs about it on my Instagram when I woke up this morning,” Lyons told The Verge via email. “I might not have noticed it on my own because I don’t use Snapchat every day, but I’m fortunate to have lots of friends and followers who recognize my work.”
Lyons says she has officially registered the design with the US Copyright Office; she also sells pins of it in her online store.