Posting Grandchildren's Sports Day Photos Exposes Personal Information... SNS Controversy Grows in Japan

"Children Are Not the Property of Their Guardians"
"Check That Faces Are Blurred Before Posting Photos"

Concerns are growing in Japan during the autumn sports day season, as cases mount of parents and grandparents posting photos of their children or grandchildren on social media and exposing not only other children’s faces but also personal information such as their schools and residential areas.

Sports Day Photos Posted Without Blurring Faces... Concerns Over Exposure of Schools and Residential Areas

The photo is unrelated to the specific expression. Getty Images Bank.

According to San-in Broadcasting, a regional broadcaster serving Tottori and Shimane prefectures in southwestern Japan, photos of children at sports days have recently been appearing on major social media platforms, including Threads.

The problem is that many people post photos without blurring the faces of other children, or reveal their schools and residential areas through name tags, school signs, and surrounding scenery.

In particular, grandparents who are unfamiliar with information technology (IT) often post photos with their audience settings set to public, increasing the risk of personal information being exposed.

Moreover, photos posted online can easily be saved or reposted by others, making them difficult to retrieve completely even if they are deleted. This has also raised concerns that personal information in the photos could be misused or lead to crimes.

Location Could Be Revealed in Social Media Posts... "Consideration Is Essential"

Pixabay

Experts warn that the location of families who need to keep their residence confidential because of domestic violence or stalking could be tracked through other people’s social media posts.

One parent said, "I’m terrified that my former spouse, whom I’ve separated from, might find out which school my child currently attends because my child appeared in someone else’s social media post."

Schools are urging people not to post or share photos from school events on social media, but some say that older people, including grandparents, are not sufficiently aware of these risks.

"Children are not the property of their guardians," one education official stressed. "Adults need to be considerate and vigilant, checking whether other people’s faces have been blurred and whether personal information is exposed before posting anything online."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.