COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KOAA) — April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, making it a critical time to ensure children are educated about the dangers of sharing images on online apps like TikTok and Instagram.
Even innocent pictures can spread to thousands, or even millions, of people. Maureen Basenberg, the executive director at Safe Passage, says children need to understand the concept of a digital footprint and the permanence of posting something online.
"Understanding that the minute you hit send, you can’t get it back — and you are not in control of where it goes after that," Basenberg said.
She says one of the best prevention tools is to teach consent before posting a photo online, and also suggests showing kids how far posts can reach on social media to help them grasp the consequences.
"Prevention is the best tool. Don’t put those things out there, and retain your privacy," Basenberg said.
Safe Passage has family support advocates available by phone or email to walk parents through resources and steps they can take if they suspect a problem.
Reach out to them here.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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