An 18-year-old woman in Carinthia, Austria, is suing her parents over the 500-odd childhood photos they’ve posted of her on Facebook without her consent. “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,” she told The Local, an English-language Austrian newspaper.
She went on, “I’m tired of not being taken seriously by my parents,” who, despite her requests, have refused to take the photos down. The woman’s father reportedly believes he’s in the right to post the pictures because he took them. But her lawyer is adamant that if he can prove the photos violated the woman’s right to privacy, her parents could be forced to pay damages and legal fees.
In France, anyone who publishes and distributes images without the subject’s consent — including well-meaning parents — can face a year in jail and a fine of up to €45,000. But privacy laws are less strict in Austria, and there’s little precedent for a case of this kind. The trial date is set for November, unless the parties involved can settle the whole thing with an allowance raise.
