‘Not everything that happens privately needs to be public’

In a viral video, a mum reveals five questions to ask before posting videos or photos of your kids online.

Imagine if TikTok or Instagram existed when you were a baby.

And your mum and dad had a public account and regularly posted photos of you – in the bath, at the playground, sleeping in your cot – for anyone and everyone to see.

Now imagine being an adult and having thousands of your childhood photos floating around the internet for anyone to look at and use.

How would you feel? Probably a bit violated, probably wishing you could take all the photos down and make them private again.

“Not everything that happens privately needs to be shared publicly,” a US mum posting as mom.uncharted said in a recent TikTok.

Her video content regularly cautions parents against sharing their children’s faces and stories online for, and she often asks parents to consider how they might be exploiting their kids for clicks and likes.

In a recent video, she shared five questions parents should ask themselves before sharing content of their kids online.

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The mum said to take care when posting kids on social media. Photo: TikTok

Viral TikTok cautions parents against sharing too much online

“Before posting images and videos of your children on social media, stop and think about what you may be ignoring or compromising for likes and views,” she said.

The questions are practical, but not always the kind of thing parents would ask themselves before posting a cute video.

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First she asked parents to consider whether they’d share the content with a random stranger on the street.

And if a child’s peers now or in the future found the post, how could they use it?

She also asked parents to think about how their child might feel if they found the post online in the future.

But the more serious question was around child predators. “Could a chid predator use this image in an unsavoury way or use this information to gain access to your child,” she said.

“And does this post betray your child’s trust or privacy?”

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Many commenters praised the advice.

“Thank you! These questions are brilliant,” one person said.

“Such great information to consider,” said another.

Others agreed that older children might be mortified to find their baby pictures online.

“People don’t realise these kids will be teens who are embarrassed AF to have their childhood moments public,” one said.

One woman shared a sad story of what could happen if a parent posts to social media without thinking.

“My son started middle school and bullying began,” she said. “Kids went on MY Facebook and copied and teased him with pics of him.”

Originally published as ‘Not everything that happens privately needs to be public’