A new public awareness campaign is urging parents to rethink how much they share about their children online, highlighting how innocent posts can expose minors to privacy and safety risks.
The “Pause Before You Post” campaign launched in November 2025 by the Data Protection Commission in Ireland in partnership with its French counterpart CNIL uses a viral advert to show how easily a child’s personal information can fall into the wrong hands.
The video, which has been viewed more than 30-million times on TikTok, follows an Irish family walking through a mall with their daughter, Ava (Éabha).
As the family rides an escalator a stranger calls the child by name. Startled, her mother asks: “Do you know that man?” The uneasy little girl shakes her head.
Moments later another stranger wishes her a happy birthday and comments on photos from her party. A third stranger mentions her football schedule and her dad’s habit of arriving late.
The scene then reveals the source: the man scrolling through Ava’s father’s social media stories, saving her images without the family’s knowledge.
The advert ends with a warning: “Every time you share their life online, you risk sharing their personal data with the world.”
Apart from details such as a child’s name, age and birth dates, this includes the sharing of their photos, recordings of their voices, school information, sports clubs and likes and dislikes.
“When all this information is pieced together, it creates a digital footprint which can easily be pieced together by bad actors. The simple act of sharing information, photos and videos of children online can lead to unintended oversharing which, in the wrong hands, can have serious consequences,” said the regulator.
The dangers associated with this are:
- Digital footprint: children inherit a digital identity created without their consent which can follow them into adulthood.
- Misuse of images: photos can be repurposed to create deepfakes or, in worst cases, child sexual abuse material. A Perspectus Global study found only 20 images are needed to create a deepfake, while parents upload an average of 63 images per month. The French Foundation for Childhood reported 50% of child photos on paedophile forums originally came from parents’ posts.
- Unwanted contact: metadata, such as GPS locations, can reveal a child’s routine and whereabouts.
- Online reputation: embarrassing childhood content can lead to bullying or future reputational harm.
In South Africa, the Protection of Personal Information Act (Popia) classifies children’s images as personal information. Posting them requires consent from a parent or guardian. In addition, the Children’s Act protects minors from exploitation and privacy violations. As a result, posting identifiable images without safeguards can carry legal consequences for parents and organisations.
The Internet Society South Africa Chapter warns public sharing of children’s images increases risks such as:
- Exploitation and misuse of photos.
- Cyberbullying and harassment.
- Digital permanence, making deletion nearly impossible.
- Unintentional exposure through school uniforms, location tags or recognisable landmarks.
How to share safely
The organisation recommends parents avoid posting identifiable images of minors in public spaces, use private, closed groups with restricted access, obtain written guardian consent when necessary and blur faces or remove identifying details.
TimesLIVE
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