Case 324573 [2024] NZPrivCmr 2 – Organisation uses teenager’s image without consent, uses it in advertising campaign

Source: Privacy Commissioner

20 Aug 2024, 09:00A video of an upset minor went viral on social media after it was uploaded without their consent. The minor’s family took steps to remove the video from major social media platforms. However, the video was not able to be completely removed and copies continued to circulate after the original was taken down.We investigated the complaint under the following principles.As the image was publicly available at the time of collection, we found the organisation did not breach principle 4. Therefore, the focus of our investigation was on the subsequent disclosure of the image in the social media posts.Extra care needs to be taken with young people’s personal information. Age is an important factor when considering fairness and reasonableness under the Privacy Act. We encourage agencies to remember that these are real people in these videos or online memes.

This is a David vs Goliath case, where the onus and due diligence was on the organisation with a team of professional communication experts. Ignorance of the situation is not an argument to decision making which ultimately causes harm.

Just because information is publicly available, does not make it automatically ok to reuse or republish for your own purposes. There can be significant impacts on all individuals, and particularly those who are more vulnerable such as minors. Online tools make it easy to share information without thinking, but agencies still have obligations to take care with personal information collected.

A good way to avoid negative outcomes is to stop and think before sharing the information. Would the individual be surprised to find you are using or sharing their information in this way? Are their any factors which make them vulnerable, or you suspect they would not want the information shared? If the answer is ‘maybe’ or ‘yes’, that might be a good time to reassess what you’re using the information for.

The agency apologised for the harm caused, and a financial settlement agreement was reached between the parties.

MIL OSI