Do you post your kids pictures on social media?

[golden547]

I'm having a baby really soon and have had comments from people saying they can't wait to see pictures on my social media, but I'm unsure if I actually want to post my child's pictures online. There's just something about it that makes me feel uneasy.

Do you post pics of your kids? If not, why?

Obviously you pick your friends but you don't pick who's on mumsnet! You have stuff in common with your friends; this is one of those things. Even statistically you must know that not everybody who has kids has social media?

I have never posted my child's face on social media. I've also never referred to them by name.

It's different for us because they're adopted so we have a really good 'reason' but you don't need a reason any better than 'I don't want to'

You can say that it's your child's information and up to them whether to share it when they're older but you aren't going to pre-empt that. People will have opinions, but frankly they'll have opinions about everything so I wouldn't let it concern you.

These days there is so much data collection going on, it's ok to want to restrict it for your child as long as you can.

Your child, your rules!

No, I respect their privacy.
Slightly off topic - When I see influencers use their children on social media, it sickens me, I actively avoid the products they are shilling and it worries me for their children' development and safety.

True i can't stop that, but it also doesn't overly worry me 🤷🏼‍♀️ and to the poster who asked, everyone i know is on fb/instagram and all of my friends who have children put photos of them on FB/instagram

I post photos of family days out, with birthday cake etc. Not loads, always fully clothed and nothing that I might find embarrassing if it were my photo. Ds has a severe learning disability and it is only one of many decisions I will always make for him. I don't like photos of children running around in nappies, covered in food, being upset etc and I don't like 'autism journey' type pages either.

I post my kids pics on SM, I don't see the issue at all. Anyone can see him walking down the road, playing at the beach, swimming in the swimming pool in full colour real life.

I'm always amazed however that so many people let their teens (and younger) on SM, TikTok etc and think that's fine or beyond their control. That's where the real danger lies, not parents putting up pics of their kids on facebook.

I do, but my privacy is so only friends can see and I don't have huge numbers of friends.

I'm noticing a local dance school has put a sponsored ad up with two very little ones wearing jackets with their names on. I really want to report it as against safeguarding, but I know that the owner's a nasty piece of work so I don't think it will do any good. I think it's appalling though, even if the parents have given permission.

I only have Instagram, but it's private. Family and friends only.

I grew up in the 80s but if then was now, if my parents had done that to me - put my images on social media, I would be livid. Growing up, there were some family members and some family friends, who didn’t like me and I didn’t like them. The thought of these unpleasant people, seeing my whole life from babyhood onwards sprawled out on FB or Instagram would filled me with so much anger and resentment towards my parents. Children can’t consent to this “private setting” or not.

I wouldn’t do it. It’s not fair to the children.

How does that work then?

These parents are awful. Capitalising of their own children. I feel so sorry for the kids.

No. I have under 100 friends on Facebook and one of my "friends" from school hit the news for being convicted of sex offences, this was pre DC but I couldn't get that out of my head. Also worked in childrens services so very aware of the danger.

I did with my eldest who is a teen, but stopped and removed them all except for one where you can’t see the face. I just didn’t think much about online privacy then. There are no photos of the baby up online unless you count WhatsApp sent directly to family living overseas.

Hi ladies, I’m new here. Got a little 6 week old baby girl and today we finally had visitors to see the baby, my cousin and his wife and their two girls - my nieces aged 3 and 10 months. I know I’m feeling particularly hormonal and emotional so I could be working myself up a little but I felt compelled to get some reassurance maybe? So a little background:

I haven’t posted our baby girl on social media nor do I plan to, as in full pics. We only announced her birth a week after she was here with just the little feet and blanket aesthetic and her arrival date. Today I just thought we waited for this moment for so long and how cute it was to see the girls together, we missed my dad and uncle, they are no longer with us sadly so in the moment I shared something to my Insta story.

The story/post I shared was my 10 month old niece using my arm as support to pull herself up and only showing her little hands gripping my shirt sleeve. Another was my new born baby girl laid on a blanket, baby grow on and little feet out and nieces hands one on each side. No faces no full full bodies just little boomerang of them moving their little hands to touch the baby or reach out to the baby which showed a little hip wiggle as they reached out as well captioned my little precious bunch.

My cousin was really not happy, he asked his brother to call me, I missed it as was dealing with baby then he called himself told me take them down he’s offended he don’t want anyone seeing the kids and as he doesn’t want his kids on social media due to jealousy and evil eye. His brother reiterated the same thing for ‘his’nieces. I’m not offended I was just a little shocked. The girls were not visible it was their hands their toys and daughters baby grow. His wife was fine with me posting a boomerang of our babies little movements with their toys, we even had a mutual convo when I said I won’t post any face pics she literally said yeah that’s ok don’t worry just send me whatever proper pics you take as well.

I totally respect the fact that in this day and age we do not plaster anyone’s kids on social media without permission or at all tbh and we definitely do not show their faces, the same way I didn’t mine. In my mind hands reaching out for toys or to touch my baby was super cute I’m a first time mum, in hindsight I should have kept it to myself and not posted it but it felt special in the moment and I knew they were beyond recognition or anything to my 34 followers of close friends and family My profile is private. I was just in a sweet bubble, but now …

It’s really making me anxious and I feel like I’ve done something so wrong and now it’s awkward. The way I was told off for it and like I committed a crime for posting my baby girls outfit with little hands and feet of all 3 children kicking about with their toys is really playing in my mind and making me rather upset … I know it’s my post partum hormones or am I being super sensitive ?

I keep looking at the boomerang and I’m not justifying my actions as ok because we all can agree to disagree and by default don’t post anyone’s kid but I don’t see how you can identify their hands or their dolly shoes as you plastered my kids on Instagram without my permission. Your wife their mother was sat with me and fine with it because she too didn’t see their faces or notice it identified as the at all! It’s really hurt my feelings

If it were me, I’d just apologise and say you’d checked with the wife and she said it was fine. Then I’d take them down. Some people don’t want their kids’ faces on social media, others don’t want them on social media full stop. Cousin and wife clearly need to communicate better.

Old thread but another note of caution. I shared the odd photo of my DC to my friend and family (fewer than 100, knew them all, etc). Turned out DM was screenshotting them and whatsapping to her friends and wider family I was low contact with (for safeguarding reasons, not on a whim).

I used to, but not anymore except in very small private groups of people I know. I wish I hadn’t posted so much when they were younger.

I imagine that in the not too distant future no one would dream of plastering their kids all over social media. With the exception possibly of celebrities.

It's appalling when you stop and think about it... babies and young children cannot give consent and once photos are out there, they are out there forever. And sadly there are sick people out there who do god knows what with these images.

My kids are much older so social media wasn't even a thing thank god. Most of my friends with babies don't post them but I have a couple who do, including one who practically vlogs her kids' lives; ridiculous amounts of photos showing full face, and also puts anecdotes on social media when they've done something wrong. I remember reading a post where she was chuckling about 'the face of a child who's just pushed their sibling down stairs'. I was really shocked by that. It's not funny, it's not charming and that info and photo are out there permanently now.

I have a folder in my FB that only certain friends (ie family can see).

No public posts whatsoever.

This. Mine were small in the early, giddy days of social media, and on reflection I wish I hadn't posted as much. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't posting even weekly, or publicly, but I still wish I had posted even less or not at all. I think images being used in a sinister way is less likely than just feeling like you've shared too much. I haven't posted for five or six years now.

I would also add that however nailed down your privacy settings are, you're only as private as your MIL least discreet friend. A work colleague I wasn't facebook friends with once mentioned how cute my daughter looked at Halloween - she'd been looking at another colleague's facebook over her shoulder, so even though I had permissions to view my photos set tightly, there's always screenshots and in person sharing. My lovely MIL is so proud of all the family that she happy harvests SIL's socials to share with us, without thinking if that's what SIL really wants.

My FB is very private (just family really) and I upload pictures on there for DM & MIL, plus aunts/uncles and cousins etc who don't see DC very much.

I use Twitter as well and occasionally put a picture on there, usually the kids from behind. Sometimes I make my whole Twitter private for a bit. I don't really have many followers on there.

I have Instagram and Threads but only browse, never post.

No, it's exploring children for likes.
I'd recommend research into what happens when you pair children in social media. Even when you have just friends and family on there.

No!

Yes I do. Not often though and I don't force or cajole them into posing and looking happy for the socials and respect them if they don't want to.