Why You Should Not Disclose Even The Minutest Detail Of Your Kids School

Being on social media my life is an open book to everyone who follows me, but I try and keep a lot of things private without making my audience feel that I am not sharing enough. Platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, etc. make it very enticing to share pictures of our kids. Sure, there are privacy settings but they don’t completely safeguard our pictures. Sharing details of your kids school can pose danger.

They say once posted, nothing is safe on the internet and can never be removed entirely. Here is a post to let you know how your harmless shares may pose a danger to your kids

• Once you post your picture, you cannot control everyone who sees it from all those who like, share, retweet, send, save and even print those pictures.
• Your innocent picture that was “liked” by 100 people can soon be seen by thousands and thousands of people so you better make sure that if you do post pictures, you’re not posting anything can give away information about the whereabouts of your kids on social media ESPECIALLY SCHOOL.
• IDENTIFYING INFORMATION
  Never share your children’s full names, birthdates, address, where they go to school and anything you take a picture of that can have their personal information on it such a birth certificate, school report card, x-rays, medical information, insurance, drivers license, passport, social security card, etc.
• School is a safe zone for kids and should remain so, even when pictures are taken. Be sure not to reveal your child’s school name (especially in those back-to-school photos!), the location of the school, and the school grounds.
• School names may be found on back-to-school photos, end-of-year photos, on uniforms, children’s school material, and sports equipment.

• When you take a picture in front of your house, make sure you don’t reveal your address. If you take a picture with your car, remove your plate number, or stand in front of the plate so it cannot be shown. For example, it’s date night and you just tweeted about it and now your help is watching the kids, ALONE at your house. You’re on vacation with the kids and your home is left unoccupied. Your husband is on a business trip for one week and you’re home alone with the kids etc. May seem small for an instance but can have bigger consequences.
• Social media encourages us to share and overshare the details of our lives, but some information should not be shared for safety reasons.
• Before you share pictures of other people’s children, and especially ones that show their faces or in the summer at the pool and in swimsuits, make sure that you ask permission from the parents before you post anything. This is most important as they can sue you but mostly it’s their child so their choice.

In 2019, a mother in the UK posted a picture of her daughter’s school uniform on social media, including the name of the school. The post was shared by a group of online predators who used the information to locate the child’s school and harass her on the way to and from school.

The child was verbally abused and followed by the predators, causing her to become fearful and anxious about attending school. The school had to take extra precautions to ensure the child’s safety, including changing her school bus route and providing additional security measures.

The incident raised awareness about the dangers of sharing personal information about children on social media, especially when it comes to their school details.

Source: The Independent – “Mother’s social media post leads to online predators harassing daughter at school” (https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/social-media-online-predators-school-harassment-a9114361.html)

Always question yourself, are we putting our kids at risk online? Are we safely sharenting or are we overdoing it?

Social media can be a boon to young parents to search information on raising kids and finding supportive communities. It is in our hands to keep the experience beneficial and safe for us and our kids. Definitely don’t share details of your kids school.

Do you also worry about sharing on social media or are you the parent who feels that it’s ok to share a few things and this post is exaggerated?

Would love to know your thoughts.