Swarm has just released an update that brings with it the ability message friends of friends. 
This means that whenever you come across a user in the app with whom you have a mutual friend, you’ll be able to send them a direct message. 
On the receiving end, you’ll be notified that the message is from a friend of a friend and be given the option to accept the message or block it. Users will also be prompted with the option to block messages from all people who are friends of friends. 
Swarm introduced direct messaging back in March to transform the original ‘public plans’ feature, which made everything awkward sauce. 
With direct messaging, users could simply pick and choose the nearby friends they wanted to hang out with, rather than declaring it to their entire social circle. Oftentimes this left users with no responses (as no one was specifically invited), or responses from people they never wanted to see in the first place. 
Direct messaging solves that, and allows Swarm to be a true social network that provides real-world value (the ability to meet up with your buds). 
Friends-of-friends messaging, on the other hand, takes on more of an exploratory nature, letting users discover new potential friends. 
Swarm has been getting a lot of attention from Foursquare (the company) lately, with updates to the sticker book and forthcoming releases that promise public mayorships, just like the old Foursquare.
