Video and Film
→ Public Service / Activism Organisation or Institution
Pause Before You Post
Data Protection Commission of Ireland
A public service film that exposed the hidden risks of sharenting and sparked a global conversation about children’s digital rights.
Case Study
Purpose of Campaign
Parents share images of their children online every day, often without realising how easily those posts can be used to reconstruct a child’s identity, routines, and personal data. Pause Before You Post was created by Ireland’s Data Protection Commission to highlight those risks and prompt parents to reconsider how and why they share their children’s lives online.
Rather than issuing guidance or warnings, the campaign was designed to provoke reflection and responsibility, treating children’s digital privacy as a matter of long-term wellbeing and rights.
Why this mattered
Sharenting is a widespread and largely unquestioned behaviour. By reframing it as an issue of children’s rights and future wellbeing, Pause Before You Post helped parents recognise a responsibility they hadn’t previously considered.
Post-campaign research showed that 80% of adults said it was important that this campaign existed, indicating not just attention, but public mandate for the conversation it created.
Cultural Response
The campaign entered mainstream conversation, with parents publicly reflecting on their own behaviour and discussing sharenting across social platforms, news outlets, and broadcast television. The film became a reference point in conversations about parenting, consent, and children’s digital footprints.
What happened next
Following its release, the campaign continued to be shared and discussed beyond Ireland. Data protection authorities in other countries requested to use the work locally, extending its relevance and lifespan beyond its original market and positioning it as a transferable public-education intervention.