Police forces in India recently warned people to keep their kids’ privacy on social media. They launched a campaign with AI-generated photos, warning parents against “sharenting,” that is, sharing photos of their children online.
Assam Police shared four images, showing striking portraits of kids, with different captions and the same hashtag: #DontBeASharent. “Children are not social media trophies,” one slide reads. “Snapshots of innocence, stolen by the internet,” reads another. The ad also warns parents not to trade their children’s privacy for social media attention adding that your children’s story is “their choice to tell.”
“Likes fade, but the digital scars remain,” the tweet reads. “Shield your child from the perils of Sharenting. Be mindful of what you share about your child on Social Media.”
When I first saw the images, I thought it was ironic to use photos of children in a campaign that warns against it. But then I looked again and realized that all of the images were AI-generated. I think it’s clear in one of the images, but not in all of them. And because of that, it’s clearly stated that all of them are AI-generated. I have to admit, that’s pretty clever considering the point of the campaign.
Deutsche Telekom also used AI in an even more striking campaign advocating for keeping children’s privacy online. They took a photo of a child named Ella and used AI to create a digital older version of her, who was talking to her parents about why they shouldn’t share her photos online. Honestly, it sent chills down my spine, I can only imagine what it was like for the shocked parents to see it.
AdWeek reports on some disturbing stats regarding “sharenting,” and I think I should leave them here. “Studies have estimated that by 2030, nearly two-thirds of identity fraud cases affecting a young generation will have resulted from ‘sharenting’—the common practice of parents sharing photos or videos of their children on social media,” this source notes. They also cite research claiming that an average 5-year-old child already has “about 1,500 pictures uploaded online without their consent by their parents!
After all, even Mark Zuckerberg hides his children’s faces online, so why shouldn’t you?
[via PetaPixel]
FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!