{"id":19679,"date":"2026-02-15T01:02:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-15T00:02:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rosello-mallol.com\/?p=19679"},"modified":"2026-09-08T08:22:04","modified_gmt":"2026-09-08T07:22:04","slug":"images-schools-gdpr","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rosello-mallol.com\/en\/images-schools-gdpr\/","title":{"rendered":"Use of images in schools: what does data protection say?"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you <strong>work in an educational centre<\/strong> or have a <strong>school-aged child<\/strong>, this situation will sound very familiar: the use of images in schools is constant \u2014 photos in the classroom, images on coat hooks, folders delivered to families, educational apps where the day-to-day life of the class is shared\u2026<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The obligations for educational centres are not few, let us remember here the requirement to <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rosello-mallol.com\/en\/how-choose-dpo-in-a-school\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">have a DPO<\/a><\/strong>, but the issue of images is often a daily headache for many schools.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">All of this is part of school life. But it also raises many common doubts:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\r\n<li>Can these images be used?<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li>Is consent always required?<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li>What if other children appear in the photo?<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li>Where is the limit?<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The good news is that <strong>not everything is forbidden<\/strong>, but <strong>not everything is allowed either<\/strong>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-why-are-images-of-minors-considered-personal-data\"><strong>Why are images of minors considered personal data?<\/strong><\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Photographs and videos of children <strong>are personal data<\/strong> under the GDPR.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And, moreover, we are talking about<strong> minors<\/strong>, which implies <strong>enhanced protection<\/strong>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This means that any use of images must meet three key requirements:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\r\n<li>have a clear and <strong>legitimate purpose<\/strong>,<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li>be <strong>based on an appropriate legal basis<\/strong> (consent, public interest, educational function\u2026),<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li>always assess the<strong>impact on children\u2019s rights<\/strong>.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-the-apdcat-s-criterion-not-all-school-activities-have-an-educational-purpose\"><strong>The APDCAT\u2019s criterion: not all school activities have an educational purpose<\/strong><\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One criterion that the <a href=\"https:\/\/apdcat.gencat.cat\/web\/.content\/04-actualitat\/menors-i-joves\/documents\/GUIA-ESCOLES-2018-PAUTESv2.pdf\"><strong>Catalan Data Protection Authority (APDCAT)<\/strong><\/a> frequently recalls is the following:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Not everything that happens within an educational centre has an educational purpose.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>For example:<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\r\n<li><strong>A photo on a coat hook or in the classroom<\/strong> so that young children can identify their space<br>\u2192 It may have an educational and organisational purpose.<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li><strong>Publishing a photograph on the school\u2019s website or Instagram<\/strong><strong><br><\/strong> \u2192 This is no longer an educational activity, but <strong>dissemination or promotion<\/strong>, and requires a different legal basis.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This distinction is key to determining whether explicit consent is required or not.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-recommendations-for-educational-centres-on-the-use-of-images-at-school\"><strong>Recommendations for educational centres on the use of images at school<\/strong><\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"736\" height=\"463\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rosello-mallol.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Post-Febrer-ENG.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-19682\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.rosello-mallol.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Post-Febrer-ENG.png 736w, https:\/\/www.rosello-mallol.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Post-Febrer-ENG-300x189.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 736px) 100vw, 736px\" \/><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-\"><\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For uses of images with <strong>medium risk<\/strong> (educational platforms, communication apps, school folders, etc.), it is highly recommended that the centre:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\r\n<li>informs families in advance,<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li>clearly explains <strong>the purpose of the images<\/strong>,<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li>requests the <strong>consent of parents or legal guardians<\/strong>, when necessary.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Transparency prevents conflicts and protects both the centre and the children.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-family-use-of-images-family-context-total-freedom-of-use\"><strong>Family use of images: family context \u2260 total freedom of use<\/strong><\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The fact that a family receives an image <strong>does not mean<\/strong> they can use it in any way they wish if other minors appear in the photograph.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It must be made clear that:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\r\n<li>images are provided <strong>exclusively for private and family use<\/strong>,<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li><strong>reuse is not acceptable<\/strong> when other children appear.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This means that they must <strong>not be<\/strong>:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\r\n<li>published on social media,<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li>forwarded to WhatsApp groups with people outside the school,<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li>shared with other families or friends,<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">published on personal blogs or websites.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-if-only-their-own-child-appears-in-the-image\"><strong>What if only their own child appears in the image?<\/strong><\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When <strong>only the family\u2019s own child appears<\/strong> in the photograph, its use falls within<strong> the domestic and private sphere.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In this case, the treatment falls outside the application of the RGPD, as long as no third parties appear or professional or public use is made of the image.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Author: <strong>Mariona Heredia<\/strong>, Lawyer.<\/p>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you work in an educational centre or have a school-aged child, this situation will sound very familiar: the use of images in schools is constant \u2014 photos in the classroom, images on coat hooks, folders delivered to families, educational apps where the day-to-day life of the class is shared\u2026 The obligations for educational centres [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":19951,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","_joinchat":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[246],"tags":[395,394],"class_list":["post-19679","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-gdpr-2","tag-rgpd-es-en"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v28.4 (Yoast SEO v28.7) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Use of images in schools: what does data protection say? | Rosell\u00f3 Mallol<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Use of images of minors in schools: when consent is required, APDCAT criteria and best practices to comply with the RGPD.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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