UK schools are being urged to remove pupils' images from websites and social media amid growing concerns that AI-generated deepfake abuse videos are being used to target teachers. According to research cited by Dr Claire Bessant, an associate professor at Northumbria Law School, photos shared online by schools are being scraped and manipulated to create child sexual abuse material, which is then used for blackmail.
Dr Bessant notes that only 7% of education authorities that provide guidance on pupil photographs mention the privacy risks of posting on social media. Parents are often asked to consent to image sharing without being informed of potential dangers, including identity fraud, harassment, and exploitation by AI platforms.
The Welsh government has advised schools to “exercise great caution” when sharing images of learners publicly, highlighting vulnerabilities to web scraping and loss of control over images. Meanwhile, the Department for Education’s data protection guidance merely states that social media use “often requires extra care” and carries “higher privacy risks”.
Dr Bessant’s research confirms that many schools inadvertently compromise children’s privacy by posting facial images online, making pupils identifiable to strangers even without names. She calls for clearer guidance and greater awareness of the risks posed by AI misuse of school photographs.
