German Children's Fund launches campaign on how to deal with children's photos in social media

The new social media campaign #DenkenFragenPosten (ThinkQuestionsPost) from the Deutsches Kinderhilfswerk (German Children's Fund) addresses children's personal rights in social media. Educators are to be made aware of their children's right of co-determination when they share their photos online.

The campaign under the motto #DenkenFragenPosten (ThinkQuestionsPost) works with six concise, animated motif series and corresponding claims. These motifs will be displayed over a period of around three weeks, primarily on Facebook and Instagram, and will lead users to the landing page www.dkhw.de/DenkenFragenPosten with information on the responsible use of children's photos in social media. In particular, it points out that children must be involved in an age-appropriate way in deciding whether to post a picture or video online. Tips with concrete assistance for parents of children of different age groups show what this can look like.

"Children belong in the middle of our society, and must also be visible on the Internet and social media. So our aim is not to ban children's photos on the Internet, but to raise awareness among parents and other adults that they should not publish or disseminate photos and videos of children without being asked - after all, children have personal rights too! And the right to co-determination is also very important here. We must not leave parents out in the cold. Adults often need support in dealing responsibly with children's photos on the Internet. Anyone who publishes or shares children's photos and videos online must be aware that this must not be a careless decision. After all, it can be a decision that can have unpleasant and undesirable consequences for the child even years later. Which photos and videos end up on the Internet must therefore be decided very responsibly. And it is precisely in this process that the child must be involved. After all, they have the right to have an active say in whether, how and with whom a photo or video of them is shared - after all, it's about the child," stresses Thomas Krüger, President of the German Children's Fund.

"But we also see the providers of social media and messenger services as having a responsibility. They must ensure that users have easy-to-find and comprehensible information on issues relating to the right to one's own image and the protection of children's personal data. In addition, social media and messenger services should also align their strategies, products and default settings with child rights and child and youth media protection maxims and make'safety by design' the standard. The upcoming amendment to the Youth Protection Act must also focus on these aspects," says Krüger.

The social media campaign is part of a project of the German Children's Fund's Children's Rights Coordination Office. The Children's Rights Coordination Office accompanies the implementation of the Council of Europe's current strategy for the rights of the child (Sofia Strategy 2016-2021) and is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth.

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