Sharenting harms kids
Adults need to model cybersafety
PARENTS are ignoring the risks of social media and are sharing too much of their kids’ lives online – putting them at significant risk, new research shows.
While much of the focus has been on teaching kids how to navigate cyberspace and be safe online, News Corp Australia can reveal that research shows parents may be just as much to blame for the dangers children face online.
And it has experts worried, with several saying it serves as a wake-up call for parents.
One in five Australian parents say photos they have posted of their children on social media have been shared elsewhere without their consent and more than one in 10 have experienced negative comments posted on pictures of their kids.
Despite this, 80 per cent of parents still sharent – posting photos of their children to social media. Facebook and Instagram are the most popular platforms for posting pictures of their children, but 11 per cent are sharing photos of their children to Twitter, which does not allow private profiles.
Only 13 per cent of parents refrain from posting photos of their kids online because of privacy concerns; despite 84 per cent of them citing privacy as either ‘very’ or ‘extremely’ important, and nearly a quarter having had negative experiences from posting photos of their kids online.
The research was conducted of 1225 parents nationally by research firm Dynata on behalf of Momatu, a digital timeline app for families that claims to keep your information private and only available to those you nominate.
Of the parents who post pictures of their kids to social media, almost half (45 per cent) do so once a week or more, with 14 per cent of parents posting daily.
Eminent child psychologist and cyber expert Michael Carr-Gregg said the research highlighted how little Aussie parents understood about the dangers online.
“Apart from the fact that it’s setting a terrible example, it’s also potentially exposing children to a whole range of strangers and pedophiles online and therefore putting their children at risk,” Dr CarrGregg said.
“While the government is investing in giving children the skills, knowledge and strategies to use the internet safely, this research suggests that similar efforts need to be directed towards adults for parents.”
Digital expert and mother of three Kristy Goodwin said parents were often confused about where to get expert advice on keeping their kids safe online.
“I believe many parents are floundering in the digital world,” Dr Goodwin said.
“As a result, their kids are swimming in a digital stream and there aren’t enough adults supervising, nor are they teaching kids and teens how to swim in the digital stream safely. We need parents to take a more proactive stance.”
Esafety commissioner Julie Inman Grant said parents needed to be aware of the risks associated with posting pictures of kids online, particularly on open accounts or platforms.
“(Parents) should think carefully about who can see the photos and what information they may be giving away without realising it, because even a school crest or a team logo can say a lot about where our kids spend their time,” Ms Inman Grant, said.
“Also, it’s important to be aware that perfectly innocent images of children, wearing swimwear for instance, can be harvested from public social media accounts and used for sexual purposes.”