Written By: AnnTerese Brandt
Sharing snippets of our lives on social media has become second nature. From family vacations to precious moments with our little ones, it’s easy to find ourselves scrolling through endless feeds filled with other people’s kids and proudly showcasing our own. But while documenting these events, I wonder if we’ve considered the potential safety implications.
“Sharenting,” the practice of sharing pictures and information about one’s children online, is commonplace. While it allows us to connect with family and friends and often seek advice and support from online communities, it also exposes our children to many risks.
We may have control over our social media accounts, but we cannot control what happens to the content once it’s out there. Photos can be copied, shared, and even manipulated using AI tools without our consent, potentially falling into the wrong hands.
In addition, posting pictures of our children online can inadvertently provide personal information such as their location, school, or daily routines. This information, when pieced together, can compromise their safety.
Here are a few tips from cybersecurity experts at Kaspersky to help us navigate the world of sharenting more safely:
- Review privacy settings: Ensure your posts can only be seen by family and close friends, and remove resharing permissions.
- Discuss privacy with friends and family: Be vocal about protecting children’s privacy and set boundaries about how they can engage with posts.
- Turn off metadata and geotagging: Not using these functions can minimize other people’s ability to track children through online photo sharing.
- Do not include identifiable information: Whether in the photo itself or the captions, be sure not to share details that would allow others to find and track children. This can include names, birthdates, schools, places they regularly visit, or even family homes.
- Use secure platforms: Instead of sharing photos online, use more secure platforms to show pictures of children to friends and family. For example, WhatsApp protects photos with end-to-end encryption and allows users to send photos that can only be opened once.
While sharing special moments with our friends and family can be rewarding, it’s essential to prioritize our children’s safety above all else. By being mindful of the information we share online, we can create a safer digital environment for our children.
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