Is it Child Porn?

Yesterday, one of my Facebook friends posted a status claiming she was upset because someone had reported her picture she had posted that morning. The picture included her son who was about 5/6. He was playing in the bathtub with his toys. The picture was not necessarily super graphic, it hid his “private parts,” but he was still naked. As I thought about this, I researched Facebook’s guidelines on “nudity” It states:

“Facebook has a strict policy against the sharing of pornographic content and any explicitly sexual content where a minor is involved. We also impose limitations on the display of nudity. We aspire to respect people’s right to share content of personal importance, whether those are photos of a sculpture like Michelangelo’s David or family photos of a child breastfeeding.”

I was happy to see that Facebook is cracking down on nudity, especially in minors. As Facebook’s community continues to grow the activity will as well. I am part of the generation that posts pretty much anything, from what I am eating, to what I am reading, and who I am in love with (duh, my husband). This is great for keeping a”journal” but it poses a lot of security questions. In college I took a Cyber Security class, and learned that if it makes it on the internet it is on there to stay, even it you try to delete it. Bringing it back to the picture containing “nudity,” I would like to point out who can be looking at your pictures.

ME: I think of myself as a normal person. I have a college degree, a husband, and a job. I work every day, do crafts, cook dinner, and watch shows. I work on Facebook so I often see pictures of your new-born babies, engagements, your vegan food, and even those dreadful #selfies…just kidding I still take them. What I am getting at is, I look at your pictures. I am a pretty safe and innocent person, and I know most of you are comfortable with me looking at your life.

 

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Stephen M. Parsons: He is a 25-year-old man, a resident of Felton, Delaware. He spent his days on Facebook liking his friends post’s, posting, and was just a regular guy. On March 21, 2014 a search warrant was presented and his home was searched. After a forensic examination of his laptop, they found more than 25 video files containing pornography. He was charged with 25 separate counts of dealing in child pornography.

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Sebastian Crump: He is a 39-year-old man who was a former cabinet office digital expert. He is now facing a long time in jail after 400 child porn images were found on is computer. He used both his work and home computer to access these images. He also plead guilty for making and distributing indecent images of children. In court he insisted he was not a pedophile, he was just a regular guy.

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Those are a just THREE examples of people who are looking at your Facebook pictures. Two of them were looking at more… You don’t wake up one morning and think ” I am going to become a child porn addict.” It is something that builds up over time. It could start with simply looking at a picture of a young child in the bath and then escalating to full nudity.

Your children don’t have a choice or a say in what YOU put on the internet. Don’t allow them to be harmed. Don’t let their picture float around the internet. Remember whatever you put on the internet, even with the safety measures you take, your picture can be saved or shared. All I ask is, be careful in what you post!

(C)LVB-2014