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ISSUES: Privacy
Chapter 3: ‘The Internet of Things’
Austrian teenager sues parents for
sharing childhood photographs on
Facebook
A teenager has suedher parents for posting “embarrassingand intimate” baby photos
of her on Facebook.
By Sophie Gallagher
T
he 18-year-old, who lives in Austria, is taking her
parents to court as she claims they knew “no shame
and no limit” in sharing over 500 photographs of
her with their friends online.
Her lawyer Michael Rami, told
The Local
Austria newspaper,
that since 2009 her parents have “made her life a misery”
by posting pictures of her having her nappy changed and
being potty trained.
Michael Rami quotes the claimant saying: “They knew
no shame and no limit – and didn’t care whether it was a
picture of me sitting on the toilet or lying naked in my cot
– every stage was photographed and then made public.”
The woman has repeatedly asked for the images to be
deleted but her parents have refused. She explained: “I’m
tired of not being taken seriously by my parents.”
The woman’s father claims that he has copyright on the
images, and a right to distribute them, because he took
them.
This case, which will be heard in November, is the first of
its kind in Austria.
Rami says his client’s case rests on proving that her parents
violated her right to a personal life and if she is successful,
her parents may have to pay compensation and legal costs.
Austria isn’t theonly countrydealingwith the consequences
of social media over sharing, in March 2016 new laws were
introduced in France to deal with similar situations.
Anyone convicted of publishing images of another person
without their consent can face up to a year in prison and a
fine of €45,000.
15 September 2016
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The above information is reprinted with kind permission
from The Huffington Post UK. Please visit www.
huffingtonpost.co.uk for further information.
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