IECL Lunchtime Seminar - Sharenting: How to Balance Children's Online Privacy and the Parents' Freedom of Expression

Assist. Prof. Dr. Günhan Gönül Koşar (Hacettepe University)

Parents share the information (mostly images) of their children with good intentions: to stay in touch with their family, to obtain support, and more. However, sharenting comes with a dark side: The metadata behind the technologies which enable automated facial recognition and the compilation of pieces of information, can provide third parties with significant personal information such as child’s name, age, location or religion. Moreover, there is neither permanent undo button nor an ‘opt-out’ link for children and split-second decisions made by their parents result in indelible digital footprints. Due to its negative implications, it must be determined when the information or images shared by the parent violate the child’s right to privacy.

The aim of this study is to provide criteria to be applied in cases where a balance must be struck between the parent’s freedom of expression and the child’s right to privacy online by reviewing the different approaches in comparative law. To this end, first, this paper explains sharenting and its implications. Then, the paper evaluates sharenting in French, German, Swiss, Turkish, English and the U.S. laws. Finally, the paper presents criteria for balancing children’s online privacy and the parents’ freedom of expression.