Parents in France could soon be banned from posting photos of their kids online

They are some of the most prolific and successful content creators, but parent influencers could soon be banned from social media in France.

Politicians in the country have put forward a new bill which would stop mums and dads from capitalising on their kids by posting endless photos and videos of them, The Timesreports.

The head of one campaign group has even described acts of “sharenting” as a form of online abuse.

Thomas Rohmer, of the Observatory for Parenthood and Digital Education, said: “These practices amount to digital violence while the battle was successfully fought to get rid of spanking and other humiliating practices.”

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A survey conducted by the observatory, and quoted in The Times, found that more than half of French parents have posted pictures of their children on the likes of Instagram and TikTok, with 90 per cent doing so when their kids were under five.

According to the poll, the average child has their image shared on social media 1,300 times before the age of 13.

Bruno Studer, an MP for President Emmanuel Macron’s Renaissance party, tabled the bill in response to concern about the constant thrusting of young children into the public eye, and trends that see them humiliated for laughs and "likes".

These include reaction videos to pranks including the “cheese challenge,” in which parents throw a cheese slice at their baby’s face and film their response.

Studer also points out in his bill that half of all photos exchanged on paedophile forums originate from photos innocently posted by families on social media, notably pictures of “naked babies or young girls in gym outfits”.

France’s junior minister for children, Charlotte Caubel, backed the legislation which is expected to pass a first reading this week, saying: “We could suspend the parents’ exercise of the right to children’s images if they seriously abuse it.

“This is the case for those using the image to make money or boost their own image.”

If the bill is passed, it would enable family court judges to deprive parents of rights over their child’s image, according to The Times.

The child would also need to be involved in any decision to share their image online “according to his or her age and degree of maturity”, the bill’s preamble states.

We'll be keeping an eye on how this all plays out. Meanwhile, parent influencers in the UK and elsewhere take note: if the ban takes off in France, you could be next...

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