There was once a time when sending a risqué picture meant coping with the possibility that it would be out there forever, then Snapchat happened along to delete those pics automatically (this does not constitute a guarantee). Now Facebook is looking to get in on the sexting* game with its own take on Snapchat called Slingshot.

[EMBED_YT]https://youtu.be/-Q7posSQl1M

Facebook would prefer you not think of this as a Snapchat copycat, but c'mon. According to the blog post announcement, Slingshot is about encouraging everyone to be a creator. And get a load of this: "Photos and videos that don’t stick around forever allow for sharing that’s more expressive, raw and spontaneous." That's the most sly way anyone has ever described sexting, I think.

The hook for Facebook's photo messaging app is that when you send images or videos to people (with a slinging gesture), they have to send something back to unlock the image. When the picture is closed, it's gone forever (allegedly). It also has support for quick "reaction" replies. If this sounds like a thing you want to get in on, the app should be live in the Play Store later today. It's already up on iOS, though.

Update: It's live in the Play Store now.

[Slingshot Blog, Get Slingshot]

*You can totally use it for other things too.