Why should we not expose children on social media like Mark Zuckerberg?

In a family photo that Mark Zuckerberg shared on July 4th, two of his daughters’ faces were obscured by emojis.

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A post shared by Mark Zuckerberg (@zuck)

Zuckerberg isn’t the only person considering how parents’ usage of social media can affect their children, likely as a measure to preserve their privacy. Author of “Sharenthood” and attorney Leah Plunkett, whose practise focuses on children’s and families’ privacy rights, told CNN that she believes other parents should follow Zuckerberg’s lead.

In order to protect children’s safety, future opportunities, and capacity to construct their own narratives about themselves and for themselves, Plunkett advised grandparents, coaches, teachers, and other trusted adults to keep children out of photos and videos.

According to her, removing children’s faces from social media is crucial for their safety as well as for preserving their sense of autonomy as they get older.

According to CNN, safety issues include exposing children to the possibility of identity theft and facial recognition technologies. 

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Plunkett added that modern artificial intelligence can now recognise people when they are older based on images of them as infants. Notably, Zuckerberg left his daughter’s face uncovered.

Not only should we be concerned about the rise of AI, but also other social media users, according to experts.

Pamela Rutledge, head of the Media Psychology Research Centre, stated to the Huffington Post in 2022 that “posting images online is not risk-free.” It makes bullying, stalking, and even predators more likely, albeit this is rare.

Plunkett told CNN that as a result, she is urging social media businesses to go above and beyond to safeguard children when parents fail to do so on their own, such as automatically concealing their faces in photographs.