Summer holidays are coming in the northern hemisphere. Family photos will be taken. Sharenting will become even more widespread. More and more parents are sharing photos of their children on social media and the practice has dire dangers about which too many parents are unaware. 50% of photos published on paedophilic forums are pictures taken by parents and innocently shared publicly on their social networks, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, 2020.
Following their awarded Undercover Avatar campaign that lifted the veil on child abuse, L’Enfant Bleu Association and Havas have decided to raise awareness among parents about sharenting by publishing a special children’s book.
The book, intended to be read to young children by their parents, tells the story of Emma’s favourite cuddly toy. It is so cute that Emma’s mum can’t help but take a photo of it and share it on her social media, publicly. This photo then goes viral and falls into strange hands: the cuddly toys enthusiasts.
At first glance, this cute story is meant to entertain children. But for parents, the reading doesn’t end there. A note invites them to reread the story mentally, replacing the cuddly toy’s photo with their own child’s. At that moment, the story takes a different turn. The cuddly toys enthusiasts turn into paedo-criminals who operate on social media to collect as many images of children as possible to feed paedophilic websites.
The postscript explains the risks of sharenting and directs readers to a dedicated page on the Association’s website to educate them on good digital practices.
The book, conceived by Havas Play, illustrated by Chloé Mencarelli, and published by Havas Édition, will be distributed throughout the summer to parents before they go on vacation, as well as at their holiday destinations.
Lastly, to reach the largest number of French citizens, a communication plan offered by Groupe Phenix, Giraudy, MediaTransports, Instore Media and Retailink will allow the story to be discovered in the metro, train stations, and major tourist destinations through an OOH campaign redirecting to an e-book that can be accessed on tablets and smartphones.
“Approaching the school holidays, it seemed really important to us to communicate with parents about the risks of sharenting. This dual-purpose book is an effective and creative way to raise awareness among parents about the dangers associated with publicly sharing photos of their children on social media. In line with our long-standing collaboration with L’Enfant Bleu, we aim to have a real impact and change mindsets in order to protect children and raise awareness among their parents. This idea is also a true example of what our community planning can initiate thanks to its deep understanding of communities,” explained Fabrice Plazolles, chief creative officer at Havas Play.
“This year again, L’Enfant Bleu continues its commitment to better protect our children in the digital space. Ideally, we should share their image as little as possible on social networks, but they are an integral part of French people’s lives. However, the dangers associated with the internet are very real, even if they may seem distant to us and we are not always aware of them. With this book, we hope to convey a simple and educational message to parents: you can avoid the dangers of pedocriminal networks by being cautious about what you post on social media,” added Laura Morin, managing director of Association L’Enfant Bleu – Enfance Maltraitée.
