Protecting Children’s and Adolescents’ Privacy on Social Media and Combating Oversharing

Abstract

When browsing through the endless feeds of social networks, the phenomenon of “oversharenting” has been observed. This term refers to the excessive sharing of images and personal data of children and adolescents by their own parents or guardians, representing an overreach of parental authority that can lead to violations of rights and pose risks to the well being and safety of minors. Thus, the research aims to examine oversharenting in light of the Brazilian legal framework and investigate the necessary measures to preserve the privacy rights and personal data protection of children and adolescents within the context of social networks. The specific objectives are: to identify these rights; to describe the practice in question along with its potential risks; to analyze whether the terms of use and privacy policies of Instagram, as a representative platform, include mechanisms to address this overexposure; and to propose possible measures to combat it. To achieve this, a socio-legal research approach will be employed, utilizing bibliographic and documentary research methods, focusing on the 1988 Brazilian Constitution, the Child and Adolescent Statute, and the General Law for the Protection of Personal Data. The approach method will be deductive. The conclusion indicates that existing legal protections are insufficient to eradicate the problem, suggesting a collaborative effort among the three main actors responsible for the comprehensive protection of children and adolescents: the family, the State, and society. These entities must actively work together to provide a safe digital environment that ensures the protection of rights.