Average Parents Posts 200 Photos Of Their Children Online Every Year

The average parent posts over 200 photos of their children online every year, according to a new study by Nominet.

On average, 973 photos are posted online by a child's fifth birthday, equating to an average of 195 photos shared by parents every year. This is the key finding of new research commissioned by Nominet for its online safety campaign knowthenet. The figure rises as children get older, with parents of those under the age of 16 sharing on average 208 images of their children online a year.

The study revealed that 17% of parents have never checked their Facebook privacy settings and almost half (46%) have only checked once or twice, despite the social network being the most common platform for photo sharing.

The research, conducted by the Parent Zone on behalf of Nominet's advice site knowthenet.org.uk, polled 2,000 parents on the ways in which they share images of children online, as well as testing them on their knowledge of the information that is captured when taking pictures on different devices.

Despite 70% of parents claiming their main gadget for taking photos was a smartphone, fewer than half (49%) were aware that location data showing where photos were taken could be stored.

Russell Haworth, CEO, Nominet, commented: "We all love to share those precious moments in our children's lives with friends and family and sites like Facebook have made it easier than ever.

"While the web helps relatives to keep in touch and participate in our everyday lives, it also has the potential to lead to accidental oversharing. It's important to ensure that the correct privacy settings are in place to safeguard our personal information and content.

"Parents are creating a large digital footprint for their child from a young age, and the right settings are important if you want to stay in control."

(CD)