It’s tough enough going through a breakup -- but ending a relationship in the age of Facebook and Instagram may require certain assurances that what’s been shared privately between partners will remain private.
As a result, more couples are considering social media prenuptial agreements as a way to keep reputations intact – and potentially scandalous pictures off of the Internet -- in the digital world.
“You might have a cell phone and you snap a picture of yourself topless, or less, and you give it to the person you’re involved with. But if things break up, those photos can be very damaging,” says Parry Aftab, an Internet privacy and security lawyer.
Aftab told CTV’s Canada AM on Wednesday that having an agreement in place about what can and cannot be shared online can save a lot of heartache.
She said a social media prenup would work similar to non-disclosure agreements used in the business world.
“So whatever is shared -- secrets, images, password access -- those things will not be shared if they break up.”
Aftab said, however, taking an ex to court to protect your reputation would likely be costly and could be a lengthy process.
“The real issue is not whether or not it’s legally binding,” she said of the prenup. “The real issue is talking about it ahead of time so if you’re putting your signature on a piece of paper, at least you know that you’ve discussed what’s in it, and sometimes, in calm times, promises might be upheld later on.”
The issue of what has been called “revenge porn” -- intimate photos or videos posted online without the person’s consent, with the intent to hurt them – has caught the attention of one Nova Scotia MP.
NDP Robert Chisholm tabled a private member’s bill before Parliament broke for the summer that would make it an offence to distribute nude or sexually explicit photos of someone without his or her consent, punishable by jail time of 18 months to 10 years.
However, Parry said often the best way to protect privacy is by simply keeping certain pictures and messages private.
“Keep your clothes on in pictures, keep them off in private with someone you care about,” she said.
