🐇When Childhood Becomes Content:
Governments aren't specifically cracking down on kidfluencing yet—but they're building the legal framework that could make that possible.
And frankly, it may be about damn time.
Because sharenting and kidfluencing are everywhere.
Children are growing up in a world where their tantrums, illnesses, embarrassing moments, achievements, vacations, family drama, bedrooms, friendships—and sometimes their most vulnerable moments—can become content.
And sometimes, that content makes money.
This isn't simply about parents posting the occasional picture of their kid. We're talking about a growing digital economy in which a child's image, personality, experiences and everyday life can become part of a public brand.
The uncomfortable question is: Who actually owns a child's digital identity? The parent? The platform? The audience?
Or, eventually, the child?
Canada has been examining pieces of this problem for years. Research funded by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner identified sharenting as a significant privacy issue and noted that Canada's existing legal framework was poorly adapted to the realities of parents publishing their children's information online.
And the conversation hasn't gone away.
In 2026, Canada's Privacy Commissioner reported that young Canadians themselves were raising concerns about parents posting about them without their permission. Some specifically said they wanted parents to ask before posting.
Meanwhile, Canadian regulators are increasingly focusing on children's data, privacy and protection online. The Privacy Commissioner has been working toward a Children's Privacy Code, and in 2026 Canadian privacy authorities examined nearly 900 websites and apps for how they collect and protect children's personal information.
Canada has also introduced legislation aimed at modernizing privacy protections and protecting children's data.
So no, we aren't at the point where governments have declared war on kidfluencing, but something important is happening.
The legal pieces dealing with children's privacy, online safety, personal data, commercial exploitation and digital rights are beginning to converge.
That could eventually force a much bigger question: What happens when a parent makes money from a child's childhood?
Why is that a question worth asking? Because once money enters the picture, the conversation changes.
We're no longer talking only about privacy. We're talking about consent. We're talking about exploitation. We're talking about whether a child should receive a share of the money their image generates. We're talking about whether a child should have the right to erase parts of a digital childhood they never agreed to have. And, importantly, if an underaged child does agree to having their content posted online, are they even at the age where they understand the long-term ramifications of what they're consenting TO?
We're also talking about something particularly uncomfortable:
The person legally responsible for protecting the child may also be the person financially benefiting from putting that child online.
Perhaps the next question isn't whether children belong on the internet but at what point does sharing a child's life become selling a child's life?
Because somewhere between “Look at my adorable kid!” and “This video made us $40,000” lies a territory we haven't completely figured out yet.
And, folks...
we'd better start figuring it out. There's a lot at stake here.
~ Ziana.
QUESTIONS FROM THE WILD
Send me your questions. I'll go diving down some rabbit holes to find answers...provided answers exist. That's the fun part. You never know.
Humans are endlessly fascinating. We argue. We obsess. We fall in love with the wrong people. We defend opinions we once swore we'd never hold. We keep doing things we know aren't good for us. Sometimes someone asks a question that makes me stop and think: “Hmm. Why DO we do that?”
Author • CLC • CBT Practitioner
© 2026 Ziana de Bethune. All rights reserved.
