Applications like Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp have brought a broad range of users in on public discussions. Image credit: Pixabay/472301
Applications like Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp have brought a broad range of users in on public discussions. Image credit: Pixabay/472301
Wednesday is the first day back to school for our learners. Some 100 000 Grade 1 students begin their educational journey, too. Parents all over South Africa are desperate to capture the magical moment and share it with everyone else. However, we live in a world where predators can use these posts to their own benefit.
Although it should be a time of joy and celebration, carelessly uploading photos of your child on the internet – and to social media in particular – can have grave consequences for all involved. We’re running through a few “safe sharing” tips so you can avoid putting your young ones in danger.
Top tips for safely sharing “back to school” photos:
School uniform rules
Yes, the shot of your kid wearing their uniform for the first time is precious. But it can also be highly dangerous. You’re giving away your child’s identity and location in one go. Only upload uniformed pictures if the school name is obscured or doesn’t feature on the outfit, otherwise, save this one for a photo frame.
Turn off geo-tagging
Many social networks will tag a user’s location when a photo is uploaded. It’s essential you disable this by visiting the settings icon on your Facebook, Twitter or Instagram pages.
Avoid “check-in”
Staying on the theme of identifying your location, parents are asked to avoid using the “check-in” features provided by social media. If this information falls into the wrong hands, criminals can learn where your child is AND when you leave the house for the school run.
Too much information
Don’t give too much information away when you do upload a picture online. For example, if your picture is captioned with something like: “My son Joe heading to Generic Primary School for the first time!”, you’re giving away his identity, name and location. Do not overshare.
Privacy settings
A good way to maximise your child’s safety is to make your profiles private, across all social media accounts. That way, you can control who is seeing your content and it allows you to stop strangers lurking on your pages.
Lay down the law with friends and family
We get it, this is all very new and exciting isn’t it? Some people get so excited, they share pictures of other people’s kids. It’s understandable: Nieces, nephews and cousins all make for a cute Facebook post.
But if they something share to their page, it opens your child up to an audience you can’t control. Be firm in telling friends and relatives about what they are allowed to share.
Get approval from your child before uploading their “back to school” photos
Finally, please make sure you ask your kids if it’s okay to upload their picture to social media. They could feel extremely embarrassed by the whole charade, both now and in later life. Don’t share anything that’s likely to cause them distress in the future.
