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'Sharenthood' book urges parents to be cautious of over-sharing kids online

DEDHAM, Mass. — Parents should be cautious about the things they share online about their children, according to the author of a new book called Sharenthood.

"We are violating our children's sense of privacy," author Leah Plunkett said. "We are depriving them of protected spaces to play, to make mischief, make mistakes and grow up better from having made them."

Parents who share too much can be giving intimate information about their children to tech companies and third parties who might receive or purchase that data. She says this is particularly true if you share details from fertility apps or pregnancy trackers.

She says the biggest problem is that we don't yet understand -- let alone control -- the ways in which those companies could act on the data we're giving them.

"We should assume that it can be used in ways we cannot understand, control or perceive," she said.

She says future generations will end up having digital data used to predict their futures or allocate life opportunities, like education and jobs.

She says we should look to new state and federal laws to address what tech companies can do with the data they collect.

But parents and other trusted adults should "think before we click." She adds we should look to use high tech tools in as low tech ways as possible.