A school’s decision to heavily restrict the amount and types of images it shares of its students due to concerns around image manipulation has been praised by a criminologist.
The Brisbane independent school’s social media still shows images of its students, but students have either been photographed as a side profile, in a large group, from behind, or even with some kind of costume or disguise on.
Brigidine College, which is a Year 5 to 12 girls’ school, made the decision to restrict “recognisable” photographs earlier this year.
The school says the reaction from parents has been mostly positive. (ABC News: Luke Bowden)
School principal Brendan Cahill said keeping students safe online had always been a priority, but AI and the dangers associated with image manipulation had put that front of mind.
“There have been many instances across society, I guess, where young people can be manipulated to be ending up in different areas,” he said.
“It certainly wasn’t their intention [nor] where they would like to be seen.”
The school has also reduced the number of images uploaded per post.
Brendan Cahill is the principal of Brigidine College. (ABC News: Luke Bowden)
Mr Cahill said feedback from parents about the change had either been positive or pretty minimal, and he was aware of other schools around the country having similar conversations.
The change comes on top of the school’s existing consent process, where parents have to give permission for images of their children to be posted.
Danielle Harris believes there is no good reason for schools to be sharing photos of students on social media. (ABC News: Lottie Twyford)
The move has been wholeheartedly welcomed by criminologist Danielle Harris, who would like to see others follow suit.
“Best practice would be no photos,”
the Griffith University researcher said.
And while Mr Cahill said schools generally used social media for marketing and promotional purposes, as well as for sharing with parents, Dr Harris was not convinced this was necessary.
“Quite frankly, there is no good reason for a school to be posting identifiable photographs of children on their website,” she said.
“If AI is able to do what it can do, why not put AI children on their websites and protect … the community’s most vulnerable?”
Dr Harris says AI can be used to completely manipulate images of children. (ABC News)
Dr Harris said there were three key issues or risks to consider.
The most serious was the possibility that generative AI could be used to manipulate and doctor images to create child exploitation material.
“What we’re seeing increasingly now is that people can use those pictures of children and take the face and superimpose it onto a naked body,” she said.
“[There’s] all manner of horrific things that they can do on various computer programs.“
Dr Harris works extensively in the area of preventing child abuse. (ABC News)
‘Taking all of the guesswork out of grooming’
Dr Harris said she was also concerned about privacy risks associated with posting identifying information, which could be as basic as a child’s after-school activities.
“Posting a photograph of a child in a school uniform, holding a soccer ball and identifying the location, the time of drop-off … if you’re giving all of that information, you’re taking all of the guesswork out of grooming,” she said.
“If that information gets into the wrong hands, that’s incredibly dangerous.”
Lastly, she said there was the issue of children being unable to give “informed consent” about the use of their image and the “digital footprint” that was being created for them.
Both the federal and Queensland police declined to respond to questions about schools posting photos of students on social media, instead referring the matter to education authorities.
Last year, the Australian Federal Police issued a back-to-school warning for parents, urging them to consider what they posted.
A spokesperson for the eSafety commission agreed schools were right to be “cautious” about using student images online, but said that didn’t mean not being able to celebrate their communities online.
“Any image that is posted publicly can travel much further than intended and may be taken and reused for other purposes without consent,” the commission said.
“While it’s a confronting reality, it’s one we all need to be mindful of in an increasingly digital world.”
The commission said schools could decide to limit public sharing or share images in a “controlled” way, such as on private platforms.
Recently introduced standards put the onus on technology companies to detect and remove AI-generated deepfakes or images altered through de-clothing apps, the commission added.
The ABC contacted a range of education authorities for comment on the issue of schools posting photos of students on their official social media accounts. (ABC News: Adam Shirley)
‘Need to be cautious’
The ABC contacted the federal education department, as well as its Queensland counterpart and state-based Catholic and independent schools’ associations, to ask whether there were any concerns about the practice of sharing photos of students on public social media profiles.
Catholic Education Queensland said rules about image usage sat with each individual school but there was an “ongoing conversation” about image use and risks associated with AI.
“What is clear is the need to be cautious around the use of children’s photos online,” CEQL said in a statement.
“These are legitimate concerns, and, as technology evolves, community standards and school practices need to keep pace.”
A spokesperson for the federal department of education said a 2025 report from the government’s anti-bullying rapid review noted cyber-bullying and deepfake image-based abuse, were increasingly “permeating today’s learning environments”.
The state’s department of education said the “safety and welfare” of students and staff was their highest priority and there were strict policies in place regarding using student images.
