Friday, April 22, 2016

Posting your child's photo to Facebook could land you in jail

Your Facebook feed could have fewer photos of smiling, giggling tots soon.
France's national police force recently released a statement urging parents to take caution when posting pictures of their children to Facebook in an effort to protect children from sexual predators and other online dangers. And under the country’s strict privacy laws, parents could end up facing jail time if they are convicted of violating the laws.
The statement comes in response to a recent viral challenge that urged parents to post pictures of their children and urge others to do the same.
French privacy laws prohibit anyone from publishing photos of other individuals without their consent, and the French police's post links to a newspaper article in which one expert explains that the law carries fines of up to around $49,000 and/or a year in prison. Also, your children have grounds to sue you in the future if they feel their rights have been violated.
"If, in a few years, the children feel they are victims of infringement of privacy by their own parents, they may demand restitution," Éric Delcroix said. "Teenagers are often criticized for their Internet behavior, but parents are no better."
Further complicating matters is that parents are jointly responsible for their children's privacy; even if they're separated, they have to consult one another before posting pictures of their kids.
France joins Germany in the campaign – the latter similarly warned citizens against digital over-sharing last year. America, meanwhile, continues to assign Instagram accounts at birth

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