Who are these people that are friends with all these dodgy people on Facebook, to the extent that people who u knowing nothing about, have access to ur data, photos, whereabouts etc?
I put photos of my kids on fb, normal everyday ones, Eg first day at preschool, first day in big school, or opening bday presents. And yes I posted scan photos during my pregnancies, (well not the first pregnancy cos fb didn't exsist then that I know of), y wouldn't I? The info that can be gathered by these photos (my full name and date of birth from scan photos for example) are things that people on my friends list already know. They know where my kids go to school. They know what time pick up is.
Nobody except Facebook, my dh & myself has control access to my actual account and only those on my friends list can see anything I post. And I do mean ONLY those on my friends list.
If I gave u my RL name, phone number AND email you still wouldn't be able to find my public profile let alone my private one. If by some random chance my public profile came up on your suggestions list, all u would see is my name (just first and maiden name, but not middle names), the city I was born in, my profile pic, and the other pic that goes at the back (don't know what it's called). Other than that it comes up with a long list of 'nothing to show' until at the bottom it says 'born in xxxx'.
Hackers, could potentially gain access but again without my password, which is changed regularly, all they would get is my public profile which doesn't even allow you to add me as a friend or message me, u can report me, block me or poke me and that is it. If they managed to get into my private account (as if they were me) then there is nothing I can do. You may say "well don't post personal info and email photos", but I HAVE had my email hacked multiple times, I also have online banking and I have online access to my health record, so imo unless you are going to go totally off the grid, no banking online, no email accounts, not even signing up to those online magazine subscriptions, then there is far more dangerous information they could glean than where my children go to school (which they could work out as soon as they hack my bank account and get my address) and what they look like.
Having said the above IF any of my children asked me to stop posting photos then I would immediately and I would tell any friends or family that they were no longer allowed to post their own photos of my dc per the kids request. It hasn't happened yet and my eldest is on fb so fully aware of what I post and my youngest is forever saying "send it to book" when i take a photo because she wants aunties, uncle's, sister, and our friends to see it. I don't take the photos FOR Facebook, I take them because I want the memories. I then upload some of them for people (who I both know in RL and trust) to view and as prearranged, show other family members that are not on Facebook.
So I would seriously like to know apart from going 100% off grid (which isn't possible for like 90% of the population with access to online services), what it is you actually are suggesting could possibly be more dangerous than anything else JUST because I post probably 2 or 3 pics each, a month.
Also, who in their right mind actually uses the generic suggestions for passwords, such as mother's maiden name, First school, First pet? That is so incredibly weak that u should NOT sit down in shock and tears when things suddenly start going horribly wrong but in anger at yourself for being so fucking stupiid!!
Really gets my goat when people try to tarnish every1 with the same brush and straight up assume that just because a parent does things u don't do or agree with, then they automatically have self esteem issues (i mean really, i was absolutely NOT posting photos of me & the kids at 5am on xmas day looking like shite, when i had low self esteem), or don't give a shit about their kids physical safety or 'ott' emotional distress.