Experts are warning parents to be more mindful when posting their children online, revealing a number of concerning repercussions that could arise.
E-commerce retailer My First Years Head of Marketing, Gareth Chadwick told New Idea that whilst it was understandable that parents were eager to share happy moments with their little ones online with friends and family, there were serious risks involved.
“With the world of social media constantly evolving, and every social media platform’s privacy settings differing, ‘sharenting’ can be dangerous if parents are not posting responsibly,” Gareth said.
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For those unfamiliar with the term, ‘sharenting’ is the trend of posting your children on social media, both on a private and on a public account.
Gareth suggests that parents implement a number of safety and privacy protocols when considering posting content of their children on social media.
- Limit confidential information – don’t post anything which people could use to identify your child or their whereabouts (eg a school uniform)
- Make your social media accounts private to ensure you personally know and have verified everyone who is viewing your posts
- Never share photos of other people’s children without their parents consent
Whilst social media may seem scary to many, Gareth said there were still ways to share content of your kids with loved ones, and keep them safe.
“It’s very possible to share images and videos of your family online safely, but if you’re concerned about who may be able to view the content, consider setting up a private Whatsapp chat or email group – or even go old school and send some printed pictures in the post!”
According to research conducted by the business, Instagram was the go-to photo-sharing app for families, whilst TikTok was the platform where parents were sharing “firsts” with followers composed mostly of strangers on the internet.
The worldwide trend of ‘sharenting’ has caused such a ruckus overseas, that the French government is trying to ban the practice, and limit what parents can post of their children online.
As part of the bill being put forward, politicians are trying to make parents legally responsible for the privacy rights of their children, who are unable to consent to images and videos of them being posted online for strangers to view.
The same bill would also punish influencers who are seen to be exploiting their children for content, sponsorship deals and to gain followers.
Whilst no such bill is in place in Australia (yet), what is occurring in the French parliament serves as a strong reminder to parents that it is often harder to remove content shared on social media than it is to post it.
