Online Privacy

Think Before You Post – protect your child from online predators

To protect our children from online predators, it can be useful to consider what they look for in children’s pictures. This could include:

• Certain looks
• Any nude photos of children (usually fun bathing shots)
• Photos that reveal addresses or common places of visit (such as home address, playgrounds, childcare centres)
• Child’s favourite food and drinks
• Names of familiar friends or family members

All this information can help online predators form a plan to lure or groom your child. Predators can sometimes pretend to be family members picking up children from childcare centres, or befriend the children with the aim of luring them away.

Be careful what you post online.

5 tips for parents when posting photos and information about your children online

1. Set social media privacy settings so that only first-degree friends and/or friends tagged in the photos can see the pictures.
2. Consider if sharing the picture online is appropriate? A picture of your toddler(s) bathing or not wearing clothes may seem cute, but it could be misused or abused by others. Consider if  it may be embarrassing for your children in the future when they grow up and look back at their digital trail?
3. Avoid posting high-resolution, full-face pictures of your children. There’s a risk your child’s photo might be misused for other purposes. For example, dishonest organisations may duplicate and Photoshop images for use without your permission.
4. Don’t post pictures of your child’s personal information or documents online, such as birth certificate, medical records, or school information.

Avoid geotagging your location when sharing photos too, especially frequently visited places.