How many times have you thought about where your selfies and snapshots ACTUALLY end up? We all love taking photos to capture our favourite memories, even though most us stress how we are going look in it before it’s even been taken. But have you ever stopped and wondered what actually happens to them? And what about the photos you accidentally end up in… the ones you don’t even know exist! I could take a good guess that everyone has thought this thought at least once!

We all know that one friend who loves documents every little moment of their lives and share it all over their Instagram and Facebook accounts. But here’s the thing: Chances are, you’ll spot someone in the background you recognise – someone who likely didn’t consent to their face being posted online. And what’s crazier, some of them don’t even have social media, so they’d have no clue their picture is floating around out there unless someone tells them!  

We know what you may be thinking “it’s not that deep”, “it’s just a photo”, “everyone does it” but actually think about it. Is it not courteous to check if someone okay with it before posting? Some people avoid social media for personal reasons and might not want themselves, or their children, shared online. You just never know.

It doesn’t matter if it’s for a client or a photo of our own team member, we always ask permission before we post onto social media.

Another perspective to look at is; is the picture flattering? We’ve seen so many blurry, fuzzy or just plain random photos carelessly uploaded to Facebook, and again, with no thought how the other people might feel about an embarrassing photo like that, being posted on another account.

It’s even more crucial to get consent due to the threat of AI! We should all know that AI collects a vast amount of data – which can lead to privacy breaches. However, Did you know that any photos or videos posted online, without prior consent from children and families, poses safe-guarding risks like their images being misused out of context or modified using AI? Getting consent isn’t just polite – it’s essential to the safety of our families!

Questions to ask yourself BEFORE you upload those photos to social media:

So, whether it’s to avoid unflattering photos of friends and family or just to ensure a level of respect, these are 5 questions to consider BEFORE you upload those photos to your social accounts:

1. Is the photo flattering? If you’re a real friend you’ll make sure it is!
2. Does it compromise the individual(s)? For example, if it’s a holiday shot do they want to reveal that their house might be empty right now? Or does it compromise that person’s character? Again, they might not want to showcase their personal lives as freely as you do. You never know who’s watching on the public domain! 
3. Have you asked permission from the individual(s) involved to post it? This is just basic respect, especially if they’re not on the social media platform themselves. It seems like a faff at first but once you get to asking when you’ve taken (and checked) the photo, it becomes second-nature.
4. Have you asked the parents’ permission to post the photo if it involves a child? There’s a lot of warnings going around at the moment about kids’ photos on social media and again, different people have different views on social media usage. Apart from it being about respect for the parent, this point is mainly pin-pointing the importance of safe-guarding children and teenagers.
5. Do you know who can see it? Social media is part of the “public domain” which means that your content is subject to the terms and conditions of the social media platforms themselves. Unless you specify that you want your account, or parts of your account, to be PRIVATE. Your account and content can be seen by anyone and everyone who finds you online. Facebook allows you to set your whole Profile to Private but also allows you to specify which posts and photo albums you want to be public or private. Instagram and Twitter are examples of social media platforms where your account is either set to Private or Public. There’s no in between.

What would your boss say?

On a slightly different note; I ask “what would your boss say?” This question highlights many examples of social media fails where people have lost their jobs over a thoughtless comment, tweet or photo. We often remind Social Progress readers, followers and fellow tweeters to always “think before you post!” This is because social media is such a powerful tool and one comment, tweet or photo can be shared/retweeted and spread around the globe like wild-fire! And once that happens, the darker side of social media becomes all too clear.

So how does this relate to the boss? Well, we have 2 points to leave you with:

1. Did you know that a potential employer is most likely going to look for you on social media as well as check out your CV?

• How does your profile look? Whether it’s Facebook, Instagram or even Snapchat, would you be inclined to interview, hire or continue to employ yourself if you were to look at your accounts from a potential employer perspective?
• Do you have a social media presence at all? If not, have you heard about LinkedIn?

2. Your boss can easily find you online and see what you’re up to (no we’re not talking about them stalking you!) – but whether you like it or not, you are representing their company. If you are mis-behaving and acting reckless how does that reflect them and the company itself? You represent the business you work for whether that’s in person or online.

You may think we’re being over the top or you might agree with us. Either way, we believe asking for permission should be a mind-set, not an inconvenience.

Have you ever been tagged in an unflattering photo or has someone put a photo of you on social media without your permission?

Are you on social media? Do get connected and say hello to us on Facebook, LinkedIn & Instagram. We’d love to hear from you!