ARKANSAS, USA — As the first day of school approaches, many parents will be snapping those traditional first-day photos, but when it comes to sharing them online, local authorities give a word of caution.
No matter what your privacy settings are, police say disclosing details like your child’s full name, age and school can put you and your child at risk.
“We see a lot of those pictures of our children going to school on the first day and it's got their name and their grade and who their teacher is and what school they're going to,” Sergeant Tony Murphy with the Fayetteville Police Department said. “That information can be used to entice children or lure children into certain situations.”
This comes as similar warnings from police departments across the nation about these popular first-day-of-school signs with spaces to add your child’s name, school, grade, and teacher’s name have attracted attention on social media.
The bottom line in most of these posts is anytime you share something online, keep personal information to a minimum.
Sgt. Murphy says even sharing a child’s full name online could provide information predators and scammers could use.
“They get their full name, and they can find them on social media if they're on social media, or find them through an Xbox gaming platform if you will. A lot of children like to play online games, and predators can also find them that way.”
Sgt. Murphy advises to stay on the safe side, this week and beyond. The less information you share online, the better.
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