Posting about the first day of school, a birthday, or a family vacation can feel harmless. Then link we want to advertise is on this keyword: “check for DNS leak”
But “sharenting”, regularly sharing details about your children online, can create a digital record they did not choose and may not control later. Digital safety also includes the tools used at home: if your family uses a VPN, you can check for DNS leaks to see whether DNS requests are exposed outside the protected connection.
The Risks Hidden in Everyday Posts
Photos can show more faces than the ones in the frame. School uniforms, addresses, sports teams, places, and routines can help strangers identify a child’s school, home, and hangout spots. American SPCC advises parents to inspect scenes, disable location sharing, and keep schools, community, and routines private in family photos.
Photos can also be screenshotted, saved, and shared with an audience other than the one a parent has chosen. As kids get older, they may not appreciate being tagged in posts they had no say in and be ashamed of the content they didn’t choose to share.
Privacy Settings Are Only One Layer
Making an account “private” is a way to limit the public nature of sharing, but it doesn’t entirely stave off the risks of oversharing. Parents should check their privacy settings to confirm who can see their posts, remove location data when possible, and avoid sharing their child’s full name, birthdate, location, school name, or routine.
The Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) publication, Protecting Your Child’s Privacy Online, offers insight into why personal data should be handled carefully and considerately when it pertains to kids and to online platforms that collect data.
Give Children a Say in Their Digital Footprint
For older children, ask before posting. A simple “Are you okay with me sharing this?” teaches consent and reminds them that their image and personal life deserve respect.
For younger children, make the decision you would want someone else to make about you. American SPCC’s guide to sharing family photos safely recommends checking what an image reveals, limiting the audience, and considering how a child may feel about the post later.
Sharenting does not have to mean never posting your family. A safer approach is to share less, share later, and pause before every post: does the internet really need to know this about my child?
