The Parenting Challenge of the Digital Age: Sharenting

Share, Share… But What Does Your Child Think?

Once upon a time, there were family albums… Private treasures kept on dusty shelves, taken out every now and then over tea, rarely shared with the outside world. Then came the internet, then social media, and with the appeal of the “like” button, albums moved from shelves to digital feeds. This is exactly where a new concept was born: Sharenting. In other words, the habit of parents sharing photos, videos, and sometimes even stories about their children’s lives on social media.

It sounds innocent, doesn’t it? After all, who doesn’t enjoy seeing a cute baby smile or watching a “first steps” video? But in reality, behind these sweet moments lie questions that are not quite so romantic: Do we truly have the right to share this photo? How will our child feel about these posts years later? And most importantly… how might these posts affect them?

Invisible Viewers and Digital Footprints

Sharenting gives a child a digital identity before they even have their own social media account. Date of birth, face, sometimes even the city they live in… When all this information falls into the hands of malicious individuals, it can create risks ranging from identity theft to digital harassment.

And it does not end there. There are “invisible viewers” on social media. People you neither know nor would want to know… People who do not simply say “how cute” when they look at your child’s photo, but may have different intentions. This is the darker side of the issue.

There Is Also the Matter of Becoming an “Economic Object”

Yes, it may sound like a harsh expression, but it appears in academic literature: children’s data is extremely valuable to the advertising and marketing industry. Every shared image is raw material for big data companies. Those photos and videos may later turn into ammunition for targeted advertising. Without you even realizing it, your child’s digital presence becomes an “economic object.”

Psychological Effects: Through Whose Eyes Do You Know Yourself?

There is also an invisible side to the issue, perhaps the one that leaves the deepest mark: psychology. Before children have the opportunity to tell their own stories, they become known through the “digital self” shared by their parents. When they reach adolescence and the gap between “who I am” and “my internet version” widens, this may turn into an identity conflict. Anxiety, insecurity, the feeling of constantly being watched… The literature indicates that these are real risks.

The Solution?

Of course, saying “do not share anything at all” may be unrealistic in this age. But perhaps asking the following questions before every post is the simplest form of protection:

• If my child saw this photo, would they allow me to share it?

• Could this information put their safety at risk?

• Could this post harm them 10 years from now?

Perhaps the way to protect our children’s digital future is to value their privacy just as much as their physical safety.

Remember, the internet does not forget. Today’s sweet memory may become tomorrow’s question: “Why did you share this?” And the answer to that question may not stand very strong next to the number of likes.

REFERENCES

• Plunkett, L. (2020). To stop sharenting & other children’s privacy harms, start playing: A blueprint for a new Protecting the Private Lives of Adolescent and Youth Act. Seton Hall Legislative Journal, 44(3), 457-489.
• Podlas, K. (2010). Does exploiting a child amount to employing a child? The FLSA’s child labor provisions and children on reality television. UCLA Entertainment Law Review, 17, 39- 68.
• Rey, J. (2013). Are children who appear on reality television adequately protected by federal and state law? Law School Student Scholarship, 398.
• Siibak, A., & Traks, K. (2019). The dark sides of sharenting: Estonian parents’ perceptions of posting their children’s photos on social media. Studies of Transition States and Societies, 11(1), 20-35.
• Steinberg, S. (2016). Sharenting: Children’s privacy in the age of social media. Emory Law Journal, 66(4), 839-884.