Posting Children's Pictures on Social Media This Christmas Is Risky; Here's Why

Christmas time and the holiday season mean a lot of family celebrations and festivities. And, in this time and age, celebrations and festivities would majorly include taking photos and videos of the family, especially of the kids.

In an expected surge in family snaps this Christmas season, cyber-security experts from VPN Overview  are giving parents a warning on the risks of "sharenting," the ever-growing phenomenon of sharing photos and videos of children online.

Parents are using their social media accounts as a modern-day scrapbook, where every detail of their kid's life is documented through photos and videos and posted online.

These parents usually have the most innocent and positive intentions. They share photos of the children as a way to stay in touch with family, relatives and friends. For first-time parents, on the other hand, it is their way to build a community, where they can share and learn parenting advice, and connect with other parents.

Of course, most of the time, it is just parents being so proud and wanting to share moments of their kids that they find endearing! However, experts have serious concerns related to this "seemingly harmless trend."

Dangers of 'sharenting'

The Time, in one of its articles, stated that there is a staggering 92% of American children that already have an online presence before they even reach 2 years old. In fact, a quarter of all kids are already on social media even before they're born - usually in the forms of sonograms shared online or on curated Instagram accounts that are dedicated for the baby.

Roughly 1,500 photos are already shared online by the time children reach 5 years old. Social media like Facebook, YouTube, and Snapchat specifically are flooded with content that features little ones in all ages.

Experts have outlined the 7 greatest dangers that "sharenting" creates.

1. No such thing as 'private'

Parents would think that they are posting their children's photos and videos on a privacy-protected social media account. Unfortunately, these privacy settings are said to offer a "false sense of security." Photos posted on closed accounts can even be screenshotted and then redistributed to a wider audience. Parents need to understand that as soon as something is posted online, one has already lost control over it. Digital data that could easily end up in the wrong hands.

2. Digital kidnapping

Statistics showed that 45.2 percent of posts in Facebook that feature children mention their names. Moreover, 19 percent of posts on Instagram feature both kids' name and date of birth. If this data are combined with illegally-obtained social security information on the web, digital kidnapping can be a very serious risk. Identity theft is one of the major risks associated with "sharenting."

3. Sexual exploitation

Sexual predators are on the hunt online. Investigators assigned to online child abuse cases discovered that tens of millions of children's photos shared on social media are resurfacing on pornographic platforms. Parents need to be aware that photos of their kid can easily be manipulated digitally to take on a sexual nature. Posting holiday photos from the beach with your kid in swimwear can seem innocent, but the image can be abused.

4. Emotional harm

No matter parents' best intentions, the kids may grow up and feel embarrassed by a photo posted online without their consent. Digital footprints can have negative consequences even years after.

5. Metadata

Parents should know that each photo posted has an attached metadata, which informs third parties all sorts of details about what is in the photo, where the photo was taken, and what type of person posted it online. The manipulative power of this metadata is "far-reaching and dangerous." Subjecting childrens' information to surveillance is too risky.

6. Online permanence

Posting photos or videos on social media also means handing over photo and video ownership to corporate companies, which can result in a difficulty to delete and remove these photos and videos. Parents, before posting, know that the photos of your kids will be forever placed on the internet, creating a "sense of permanence to a child's identity." Is it worth the risk?

7. Lack of legislation

Sharing photos and videos online has little to no regulation. Removing a photo, for example, will be very difficult unless one suspects sexual exploitation.

Read Also: Are You a 'Sharent'? Follow These Tips to Stop Oversharing About Your Kids Online

Post with consideration

"In this fast-evolving world of social media, sharenting can have serious consequences. Children are exposed to dangers as their parents set boundaries on their behalf regarding social media. While these dangers are worth considering, there are certainly ways you can safely share pictures of your family life online if you remain conscious of the possible consequences and consider the position of your child," a spokesperson for VPN Overview declared.

According to Cymru Online, these are the top five ways to safely share online, especially this holiday season and parents just want to create and gather memories with their young ones.

1. Instead of sharing content on social media, switch and share to private emails.

2. Always avoid nudity or even partial nudity.

3. Confidential information should be limited.

4. Get children's consent.

5. Never ever share photos of other people's children.

Related Article: 'Sharenting': Why Sharing Too Many Photos Of Kids On Social Media Could Be Dangerous