Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

bunnspecial

macrumors G3
May 3, 2014
8,319
6,377
Kentucky
guess I'm a little confused as to why there'd be photos like that on Facebook in the first place. Did you voluntarily take them and post them? Of course it's your decision what you do with that content, and don't take that as a judgement.
Hospital photos were ones I took and my wife posted. What I’m calling hospital photos too were not the, for lack of a better term, “uncensored show everything” photos(which I’ve seen plenty of-and for that matter took plenty of but have never shared with anyone other than my wife!) but rather swaddled and with a name/weight/size/time info board.

The Christmas card photo was one we had taken and posted.

The ones her friend posted-the friend asked us if it was okay before posting.
 

drrich2

macrumors regular
Jan 11, 2005
221
127
What does getting rid of photos of children have to do with "erasing them from society?" I'm not seeing the connection there...

Sure, the digital world is very important, and a big part of society, but there are such things as in-person interactions. Wiping pictures of children off the internet is not going to "erase them from society," because there are schools, community centers, etc. (and even just in the public) - those are all spaces where children exist.
I see your point, but the other poster had one, too. Many people in the U.S. mostly interact with their own nuclear family at home, and the working parent(s) with coworkers at work. Much of their socialization with friends, family and 'community' is only very sporadically in-person. Many couldn't pick their next door neighbors out of a police lineup. A family that posts lots of shots of the parents on their Facebook page and never posts a shot of their kid(s) would seem strange. You can write things without including photos, but humans are pretty visual and people you hardly ever see are less interesting.

So yes, the kids aren't locked in the basement or attic or expunged from all public record because parents don't post pics of them on Facebook, but it's still an overt exclusion, more obvious when friends and family post happy, celebratory shots of their kids.
 
  • Like
Reactions: rm5

SpotOnT

macrumors 6502a
Dec 7, 2016
867
1,756
Well again many court cases against predators beg to differ... But don't let the truth stand in the way of your beliefs.

Any references to support your claim? A single court case showing a child was blackmailed with photos taken from facebook will do. Just one.

All the blackmail examples I have seen, be it the US, Spain or Brazil, were based on photos taken by other children or from photos that the child was conned into sharing with the predator.
 
  • Like
Reactions: mollyc

olavsu1

macrumors regular
Jan 3, 2022
115
72
Yes, there is a very high risk that your photos of children will be used by AI (artificial intelligence) to create photorealistic (deepfake) child porn. I have found similar pictures in deviantart.com environment.

There seem to be image generators that are meant to create child porn


This should serve as a lesson not to put pictures of your children on the public web.
 

drrich2

macrumors regular
Jan 11, 2005
221
127
Yes, there is a very high risk that your photos of children will be used by AI (artificial intelligence) to create photorealistic (deepfake) child porn. I have found similar pictures in deviantart.com environment.
I imagine there is a very high risk that photos of children will be used by A.I. to create photorealistic child porn.

I question the 'your photos of children' part. It can happen. But there are untold millions of photos of children online and in print media, etc... What are the odds someone is going to take your photo of your kid and do something detestable?

In the U.S., just to confine matters to a limited geographic region, there are around 330 million people spread over a land larger than Western Europe. In the U.S. alone, there are probably a large number of kids who bear a strong resemblance to yours.

So it seems to me that, unless your kid is strikingly beautiful, the odds your Facebook photo of your kid will be copied to use in deepfake child porn generation are likely tiny. If it happens, I doubt you'll ever know of it. If you did see it, there's a good chance neither you nor anyone else would know for sure that was your kid. At the rate kids mature and change physically, and change their hairstyles, etc..., in several years that depiction likely won't be recognizable to most people.

Will there be exceptions? I imagine so. Major celebrity figures such as politicians and actors sometimes get embarrassed by old photos and stories. Remember the controversy over whether Bill Clinton inhaled (pot) when he was young?
 
  • Like
Reactions: SpotOnT

SpotOnT

macrumors 6502a
Dec 7, 2016
867
1,756
Would love a source for this.

As posted, kids are being blackmailed - but it is from con artists who pretend to be in a relationship with teens/preteens and then trick them to uploading self taken nudes.

It happens. I can provide links to news articles if you like. Numbers I believe are in the dozens per year in the US.

But again, these photos are not from what parents upload on facebook. And they are not AI fakes.

If ovbacon has any examples of pictures that parents uploaded to facebook, that got turned into deepfakes, and then were used to blackmail the child - I would definitely like to see the reference. I have not heard of anything like that happening.
 

olavsu1

macrumors regular
Jan 3, 2022
115
72
I question the 'your photos of children' part. It can happen. But there are untold millions of photos of children online and in print media, etc... What are the odds someone is going to take your photo of your kid and do something detestable?

It is known from police statistics, very often the perpetrator of such mischief lives in the same village as the victim and knows the victim.

Even my own children wouldn't be safe from it, as I have enough enemies who are ex-school bullies. Some of them continue to look for ways to somehow damage my reputation in society.

I think it's because when I was a teenager, I voluntarily ran a kindergarten with four girls, where there were about 20+ small children in better times and I didn't let thugs pass thug exams on these children.

There was one case where small children, who were still in the carriage, had to be protected from a pedophile, who came claiming to be the uncle of this or another girl.

//written using axe translator
 
Last edited:

SpotOnT

macrumors 6502a
Dec 7, 2016
867
1,756
It is known from police statistics, very often the perpetrator of such mischief lives in the same village as the victim and knows the victim.

Even my own children wouldn't be safe from it, as I have enough enemies who are ex-school bullies. Some of them continue to look for ways to somehow damage my reputation in society.

I think it's because when I was a teenager, I voluntarily ran a kindergarten with four girls, where there were about 20+ small children in better times and I didn't let thugs pass thug exams on these children.

There was one case where small children, who were still in the carriage, had to be protected from a pedophile, who came claiming to be the uncle of this or another girl.

//written using axe translator

If you have people out to get you/targeting you, then I can understand your concern. But most people don’t have enemies out to humiliate them by posting nudes of their children. It isn’t that common.

Your other examples are about pedophiles in general. No one argues the pedophiles don’t exist. The question is about the real harm that can come to children by parents posting pictures of them online.

As far as I know, the harm is small. The examples of children being used in deep fakes were generated by their classmates using photos they took themself. They aren’t pedophiles, they are bullies and the photos used were not taken from what the parents chose to share online.
 
  • Like
Reactions: drrich2

ApplesAreSweet&Sour

macrumors 68000
Sep 18, 2018
1,880
3,400
I was able to access it via Apple News +.

Interesting issue. It reminds me of the dilemma some parents face - do you let your kid 'free range' a bit (e.g.: play in the yard, bicycle in the neighborhood) or not...because a child molester might abduct him/her?

So the concern is some evil doer using A.I. to put your kid's facial likeness on something inappropriate. And it can be done with any age.

Hard to imagine large masses of people are going to quit posting to Facebook, etc..., over this.
This just seems like it could bring far worse consequences than just being misused for bullying or something explicit, even if that would be bad already.

If AI is trained on and draws from data pools of real people, who's to say what a specific face gets used for. Even if it's unintentional, it could lead to some terrible outcomes.

I pray most of it ends up benign.

But I just can't help feel that there's next to no regulation or really feasible ways of controlling these things, considering how many have access to these tools.

Something tells me analog media will see a renaissance of sorts. Idk.
 

SpotOnT

macrumors 6502a
Dec 7, 2016
867
1,756
In general I would be very careful posting pictures online unless it’s for professional / business purpose.
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/09/20/europe/spain-deepfake-images-investigation-scli-intl/index.html

Just to be clear, the incident in Spain was not pedophiles/blackmailers using images posted online.

It was classmates using photos they took themselves. Not posting photos of your children online would have done absolutely nothing to stop this from happening.
 

olavsu1

macrumors regular
Jan 3, 2022
115
72
SpotOnT said:
As far as I know, the harm is small. The examples of children being used in deep fakes were generated by their classmates using photos they took themself. They aren’t pedophiles, they are bullies and the photos used were not taken from what the parents chose to share online.


Means are not chosen for bullying. Images published by the person themselves are also used. I will not describe these cases here. More detailed information can be obtained from my police officer: maria.bulak@politsei.ee
 

rm5

macrumors 68020
Mar 4, 2022
2,291
2,619
United States
I see your point, but the other poster had one, too. Many people in the U.S. mostly interact with their own nuclear family at home, and the working parent(s) with coworkers at work. Much of their socialization with friends, family and 'community' is only very sporadically in-person. Many couldn't pick their next door neighbors out of a police lineup. A family that posts lots of shots of the parents on their Facebook page and never posts a shot of their kid(s) would seem strange. You can write things without including photos, but humans are pretty visual and people you hardly ever see are less interesting.

So yes, the kids aren't locked in the basement or attic or expunged from all public record because parents don't post pics of them on Facebook, but it's still an overt exclusion, more obvious when friends and family post happy, celebratory shots of their kids.
Hmmm, I guess I had (have) a different experience... I'm not trying to challenge you, but I'm just saying that hasn't been my experience.

At least when I was younger (this is still true to some degree, but I'm blaming the pandemic for its waning), my parents would go out to dinner about twice a month with their friends—not coworkers or family—their friends. Events at their workplaces attract(ed) not just their coworkers, but their friends.

I'm honestly not sure if I've ever appeared (when I was younger) on people's social media pages, because my parents were very careful to guard those pictures, and instead, get them printed in photo albums.

EDIT: I think for my parents, there's not a very clear line between coworkers and friends—their coworkers are their friends.

EDIT #2: About the "community" part, I've done plenty of engagement with that myself. Which means that of course people post stuff with me in it, but most of the time, I'm fine with that.
 
Last edited:

rm5

macrumors 68020
Mar 4, 2022
2,291
2,619
United States
Means are not chosen for bullying. Images published by the person themselves are also used.
I think there's some truth to that. But a person can just as easily take a photo (or use an already existing photo, etc. - or it doesn't even have to be an image) and do just as much, if not more, damage.

This is precisely why I never post pictures of myself online (at least of my face). No real picture of my face has ever appeared on this site, I can guarantee, and no real picture of me has ever appeared on YouTube or Instagram in a leisurely way (i.e., not for professional purposes). My "leisure accounts" and professional accounts are kept ENTIRELY separate, and for good reason. I believe I explained in some other thread (can't remember which one) what happened when they weren't.

I've already been subjected to enough harmful nonsense (whether directed at me or not), and thus, I've learned how to avoid it.
I will not describe these cases here. More detailed information can be obtained from my police officer: maria.bulak@politsei.ee
?????

Hmmm?
 

olavsu1

macrumors regular
Jan 3, 2022
115
72
I am estonian. And I have many such experiences that I cannot talk about.

I was also denied from having accounts with pictures after the last brutal bullying incident.
 
  • Like
Reactions: rm5 and SpotOnT

drrich2

macrumors regular
Jan 11, 2005
221
127
Hmmm, I guess I had (have) a different experience...
Yes, and many people have different experiences. In the U.S. today, many follow opportunity in various forms (e.g.: educational, vocational, mates) far from where they grew up, and don't have much in-person social network outside of work. Many who socially network at work don't mix much with coworkers outside of work (after all, 40+ hours/week is more than enough for some people). There's an interesting (and long!) article on societal changes over time - it's a tangent, but for those interested: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/03/the-nuclear-family-was-a-mistake/605536/

But what I describe is not everyone's reality. Some people could delete Facebook with little impact on their lives. I mostly like and occasionally share memes and such; I rarely post anything, and almost never a photo of me or my family. Then again...I'm a borderline hermit. Some have lively in-person social lives outside of work.

It is known from police statistics, very often the perpetrator of such mischief lives in the same village as the victim and knows the victim.
Unfortunately, if someone local targets a person (child or otherwise), it's not hard to get a photo. Many small digital cameras have high-power telephoto capability. An SLR with a big zoom stands out, but a Nikon or Panasonic compact might not. Thanks to rear LCD displays, you don't even have to hold it up to your face so your target can see you pointing at them. I used to do a little amateur wildlife snap shooting, and I've got sweet closeups of some skittish creatures. Compared to eastern spiny soft-shell turtles, most humans would be easy.
 
  • Like
Reactions: rm5

mtbdudex

macrumors 68030
Aug 28, 2007
2,687
4,242
SE Michigan
cd03d39db423a6bcb452faa8a9639d1b.png


Permissible Subjects
Despite misconceptions to the con-trary, the following subjects can almost always be photographed lawfully from public places:
accident and fire scenes
children
celebrities
bridges and other infrastructure
residential and commercial buildings
industrial facilities and public utilities
transportation facilities (e.g., airports)
Superfund sites
criminal activities and arrests
law enforcement officers
 
  • Like
Reactions: drrich2

heretiq

Contributor
Jan 31, 2014
743
1,169
Denver, CO
I actually disagreed with this article. It reminds of the fear mongering involved with “stranger danger”, which study after study have now shown to be bad advice.

I also think trying to erase kids from society - and like it or not, the digital space is a very much part of society today - will cause all sorts of even bigger problems.
Really?? What sorts of problems could be bigger than having your person-hood hijacked or exploited and your life and livelihood compromised? I’m truly curious.

Indifference to the problems presented by social media is the root cause of the very legitimate issues raised by the article.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Ac1d 8urn

olavsu1

macrumors regular
Jan 3, 2022
115
72
There are all kinds of people.
When I bought the D750 camera, I tried portrait photography.
I found the model who doesn't get tired and doesn't make weird faces for the camera.
Next to the trash can I found a good looking cart to put he in. I bought a datacolor colorcard and a sekonic light meter. I was in my garden with all this staff. It happened, the police were called to me there. They came with the story that they had received a call: "Child porn is being made in my garden."
I then asked the police officers to look around to see if it really looked like that.
They watched and scoffed: "That is obviously false call!" I whined that this nonsense was annoying and that something could be done about these callers. They went away grinning and offered to do something with the caller. Unfortunately, Estonia is small, a daughter of a very famous family has a similar doll. Now I have to fight the rumors that I have something romantic between me and him.

In retrospect it seems funny.
 

olavsu1

macrumors regular
Jan 3, 2022
115
72
commercial buildings
industrial facilities and public utilities
transportation facilities (e.g., airports)
When taking pictures of these things, you will be dealing with security guards who may demand that the photos taken be deleted. The visual side of these things are protected by copyright and sometimes trade secrets. One of our department stores exceeded the news threshold by the fact that the security guards yelled at the photographer that photography is prohibited in the department store and around 500 meters outside the department store.

The difference here is which camera is used. you can take pictures of anything with a mobile phone without being noticed. but with some professional cameras you can get beaten.

by reading all §§§§§§ relating to photography applicable here. would like to live somewhere else or even on another planet.

That picture is illegal.

But this one is legit.
 
Last edited:

scorpio vega

macrumors 65816
May 3, 2023
1,217
1,502
Raleigh, NC
I have never understood posting pics of young kids online. Especially since the child is not the one giving their permission for their pics to be shared by family.

Unless it is something I have a small network of family and friends, I’d never want my children’s photos out there in the web that some creep can manipulate.

Not even manipulate but I have read stories of seemingly innocent pics accidentally leading to children being abducted because psychos study the BACKGROUND to learn the schedule and regular places the family may go.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ac1d 8urn and rm5

SteveJawbs

macrumors member
Oct 30, 2022
73
96
Palantir collects every photo you send and sentence you type.

If you have used Tinder, Bumble, JDate, Match or OKC - it’s in Palantir.

If your child is registered in Googles School portal app, your child’s history is in the cloud and Palantir forever.

If you shop at CVS, Target, HD, Walmart, Lowes and Starbucks your check out photo is beamed to Palantir every time.

They got us by da nada.

Don’t post your children on FB.

Too late. Your wife just did.

You might as well print pics of your kids and post them in Outback bathroom stalls for everyone to see. Same thing.
 
  • Like
Reactions: SpotOnT
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.