Police urge caution as parents share kid photos during back-to-school

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) — Lunches are packed, and the outfits are perfect; now time to pose for that iconic back-to-school picture. But before you snap that photo for social media, be aware of some of the hidden risks of sharing too much information on social media.

The Bonneville County Sheriff's Office warns a child's image can be spread far beyond the intended audience. Even if you're just sharing to a small group of people, you have no control over where others can share your information.

"Be careful about what you, as a parent, post on social media when it's tied to your kids and other sensitive information," Sergeant Bryan Lovell, the Public Information Officer with the Bonneville County Sheriff's Office, said. "Social media is one of those things that's out there. It's on a lot of different platforms. They get a lot of fraud and crime and people, you know, hacking or pages and things like that. So making sure that you understand the security features on those platforms and you're utilizing those to keep you safe"

Certain details such as your kids' age, grade level, school information, and many more personal details can pose a risk to you and your kids' privacy. Law enforcement has seen that criminals can access this information.

"You have criminals that are doing a variety of things to get your information," Sergeant Lovell said. "And they may be using what you post and what's on your social media to get more information. And that could be about your kids and where they go to school or where you live. And parents just need to be real careful about that. Even if you're not posting that publicly and say you're only limiting that to a group of friends or family or a neighborhood or something like that. Once it's out there, it's still vulnerable. It's not private. Once you put any of that information out there, you can't get it back."

Sharing details about your children's routines and what grade they're in could be a safety risk as well. It's important to limit details on social media but that doesn't mean you have to stop this back-to-school tradition. Just be mindful about what is shared online.

"So just being cautious that way," Sergeant Lovell said. "I mean, social media is a great way to communicate and keep up with people. But you want to be careful and make sure that they know how to be safe and that your kids are doing appropriate things online."

The Sheriff's Office encourages parents to start those conversations on internet safety once your child starts going online. It's important to stay educated on various internet platforms and their safety policies. To learn more information about online posting safety, the ICAC website offers age-appropriate resources to teach adults and children about internet safety and to identify and avoid child predators.