An 18-year-old Austrian girl has sued her parents for posting pictures, including “embarrassing” images from her childhood, on Facebook without her consent.
According to Austrian news website ‘The Local’, the teenager said that her parents had made her life miserable as they have posted 500 pictures of her since 2009 on the social networking site. The photos were shared on Facebook with her parents’ 700 friends. The shared images include baby pictures of her having her nappy changed and potty-training pictures.
“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 girl was quoted as saying.
Despite her requests, they have refused to delete the photos, prompting her to sue them, she said, adding that her father believes that since he had taken the photos he had the right to publish the images.
If it can be proven that the images have violated her rights to a personal life, then her parents may lose the case, noted Michael Rami, the girl’s lawyer.
This is the first case of its kind in Austria, but, based on similar cases abroad, the girl’s parents may have to pay some financial compensation for her pain and suffering, and will also be liable for her legal costs, Mr. Rami added.
The case will be heard in November and, if the parents lose, it could have repercussions for Austrians who post countless images of their children on social media without their consent, the report said. Austrian privacy laws concerning social media are not as strict as some other countries.
In France, anyone convicted of publishing and distributing images of another person without their consent can face up to one year in prison and a fine of up to 45,000 euros.
This would apply to parents publishing images of their children too.
