'Sharenting' may put child's safety at risk

Sharenting – a parent's habitual use of social media to share news and images about their children – puts the child's online privacy and, potentially, safety at risk, warn researchers. The researchers found evidence that women's feelings of vulnerability about being a mother are linked to their posting on social media.

Those posts sometimes include their children's personally identifiable information, such as names, birthdates, and photographs, showed the findings published online in the Journal of Public Policy and Marketing.

The women who participated in the research articulated a variety of risk factors for vulnerability – a changing body, a changing view of self, new responsibilities associated with motherhood, demands of nursing, exhaustion, and issues such as postpartum depression or anxiety.

The researchers suggest the need for enhanced governmental guidance to protect children's online privacy from commercial entities.