As students return to the classroom, Ontario Provincial Police are asking parents to be cautious when it comes to one particular back-to-school tradition: taking and posting photos of your children on the first day of class.
While such photos are a visual record of an important family moment, police say the details that can often accompany the photos, such as a sign with the child’s name, age, school and other details, can be utilized by scammers or predators if that photo is posted online.
“We don’t want to scare people, we’re just putting that safety message out to Mom and Dad and to any parent or caregiver that may be excited to post certain pictures up with their kids, watching what they post,” said OPP Cst. Ed Sanchuk.
Location-related details in the image itself could also provide information as to where the photo was taken and what school your child attends, police warn.
“It it’s by a school bus … even a school bus number, because school buses run certain routes,” he noted.
“The main fact is we just want to be very conscious of what we’re posting each and every day about our kids. We’re proud of our kids. We’re excited about our kids, but we want to make sure that we’re keeping them safe at all times.”
The RCMP issued similar safety advise last week, noting that personal information could be used by individuals to identify, find, and build a false sense of trust or security with a child.
“A stranger could approach a youth, list their personal details, and claim they know their parents or are a trustworthy adult, when it is in fact untrue,” a release said.
For parents and guardians who still wish to post first day photos, police advise to remove as much personal information as possible.
In an example tweeted last month by East Region OPP, police recommended not listing an age or teacher name, and writing “school” instead of the actual school name.
“The issue, too, is as the year progresses, as kids join sports teams … when you post a picture of your child, say running track or field, that usually has the school logo on it as well,” Sanchuk said.
“So not just for the first day but for everyday going through the school year.”
Parents and guardians are also advised to recheck their social media security settings as well as friend and follow lists. Some social media services allow users to have content appear only for certain people or groups.
“It’s a great opportunity for Mom and Dad or any caregivers to sit down with their kids, have a really good, frank, open conversation about the dangers of the Internet and what type of safety measures you can put in place to make sure that they stay safe online and offline.”
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