Woman slams her ‘intrusive’ mother-in-law for posting photos of her baby son on Facebook without asking – but is accused of being ‘precious’ and ‘over-sensitive’
- Anonymous British woman revealed she’s ‘very angry’ with her mother-in-law
- Mother-in-law posted photos of her baby son on Facebook without permission
- Woman wrote on Mumsnet she hadn’t shared info about pregnancy on Facebook
- Responses were divided, with many urging woman to speak to mother-in-law
A woman has slammed her mother-in-law for sharing photos of her baby son on Facebook without permission.
Posting anonymously on the parenting site Mumsnet, she told how she hadn’t posted anything about her pregnancy on social media, and is ‘very angry’ that her partner’s mother used a snap of her child as her cover photo.
The woman, believed to be from the UK, admitted it makes her nervous because she doesn’t know the people on her mother-in-law’s friends list who could see it.
While many Mumsnet users were sympathetic to her cause and urged her to speak to her in-law to remove the image, others claimed her reaction was over the top.
A British woman sparked a Mumsnet debate about asking for permission before sharing a photograph of children on social media (file image)
The woman vented her fury that her mother-in-law posted a photo of her baby son on Facebook without asking
Writing on the forum, the mother asked: ‘Am I unreasonable to feel very angry that my MIL changed her cover photo to a huge picture of my baby’s face without asking me first?
‘I have never posted anything about my pregnancy or my baby on Facebook and I feel if anything does get uploaded onto social media/the internet it should be my decision.
‘You can view someone’s cover photo whether their profile is private or not so I feel it was very intrusive of her. Especially as I have no control over her friends list or her privacy settings.
‘She also uploaded a photo of her holding my son, sat with her daughter and my partner (baby’s father). I was not even acknowledged in this post which I found quite hurtful. Am I being a bit sensitive here?’
A number of users admitted they wouldn’t be bothered if photos of their children were shared online, with one person commenting: ‘What do you think is going to happen to the photos now they’re on Facebook? This isn’t a big deal and you’re being very precious.’
A stream of responses to thread argued the mother-in-law hasn’t done anything wrong and that the woman is being too sensitive
Another agreed, writing: ‘Yes I think you’re being a big sensitive OP. Why would you get “very angry”? Just sit down with her and have a calm conversation about use of pictures on social media. You’re right that in today’s society she should have asked first but she probably meant no harm (unless there’s a huge untold back story) she’s just a proud grandmother.’
A third added: ‘YABVU for not simply asking her to take it down. No need to be fuming angry.’
But others confessed they too would also be upset if photos of their children were shared online without permission.
Others agreed with the woman, confessing that they too would be upset if someone posted a photo of their child on the internet
‘Personally I feel a line has been crossed and you should ask for it to be taken down,’ a fellow mother wrote.
‘A friend of mine is very active on social media but NEVER posts stuff about her kids and it got a bit awkward when her little boy was in some group party photos. The other mum was really upset because it meant she couldn’t post photos of her kid’s party but ultimately she understood.’
Another commented: ‘I would be upset too. I’m having a strict no social media policy. You don’t know who is looking at these pictures. Not everything has to be posted on Facebook.’
A third added: ‘Tell her to take them down or you’ll stop sending her pictures or letting her take them. Personally, there will be no pictures of my child on social media until they choose to put them there themselves. And this will be made very clear to all relatives.’