Imagine this: you launched a marketing campaign with vivid photographs of children that perfectly showcase your product or service. The site looks attractive, the content seems honest and family-oriented. But after a few weeks you notice that search rankings have started to fall, traffic is decreasing, and conversions aren’t growing as you expected. What happened?

The answer may be simpler than you think: Google downgraded the priority of your content because of the use of large portraits of children. This is not a penalty in the classic sense, but the search engine’s algorithms reassessed the safety of your content and decided that it does not meet modern standards for protecting children online.
In recent years Google has radically changed its approach to evaluating content that contains images of children. This didn’t happen out of nowhere: the company follows international personal data protection rules such as COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act) in the US and GDPR-K in Europe. But most importantly: Google understands that large portraits of children can attract bad actors and create risks to the safety of minors.

In this article I will explain why Google is so strict about children’s photos, what legal risks you may face, and how to properly use images of children in marketing so as not to lose search rankings and not expose yourself to reputational and legal problems. This knowledge is critically important for any business that works with a family audience or uses images of children in its content.

Child Protection: COPPA, GDPR-K and Biometrics

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International child protection standards such as COPPA and GDPR-K set strict rules for processing personal data, including biometric data, to ensure the safety of young users in the digital environment. These rules regulate not only the collection and storage of information, but also special requirements for sensitive data, such as children’s photos.

A close-up photograph of a child’s face is not just an image. It is highly sensitive personal biometric data. Why? Because a face can be used to identify a person, track their location, and create a digital profile. In the era of neural networks and artificial intelligence, children’s biometric data become especially valuable and dangerous.
COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act) is a U.S. law that prohibits the collection of personal information from children under 13 without explicit parental consent. GDPR-K, the European extension of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), imposes even stricter requirements for processing data of children under 16.

Under these laws, if you publish a child’s photo, you must have:

  • Written consent from a parent or guardian for the collection and processing of the child’s data
  • Consent to publish the photograph online
  • A clear description of how and where this data will be used
  • A mechanism to delete the data upon a parent’s request

Google cannot technically verify whether you have all these documents. But the system can detect that large portraits of children are posted on your site, and algorithms automatically lower trust in such content. It’s a kind of precaution — better to lower the priority of potentially risky content than to allow it to spread.

Content Safety: Google child protection and risk detection

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Google isn’t just concerned with legal nuances: the company actively fights child exploitation, i.e., the exploitation and abuse of children online. When you publish a close-up portrait of a child on your site, you create a risk. That portrait can be downloaded, reused, manipulated, or used for purposes you never intended.

Google has built special mechanisms into its algorithms to detect and filter content that may pose a risk. The system uses computer vision and neural networks to analyze images. The algorithms recognize:

  • Close-up portraits of children’s faces (especially in focus and facing forward)
  • The context in which the image is placed (commercial, entertainment, educational)
  • Presence of other “red flags” on the page (for example, contact information, data collection forms)
  • Behavior of users who visit such pages
If the algorithms detect a potential risk, they do not remove the page from the index but lower its priority in search results. That means your page will rank lower, receive less organic traffic, and, as a result, deliver fewer conversions.

Google Ads and the ban on children’s faces in advertising

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If you use google ads to promote your business, you need to know a clear rule: Google prohibits the use of large portraits of children in advertising. This is not a recommendation – it is a strict restriction that can lead to your campaign being disapproved or even to your account being blocked.

Since 2025, Google has simplified access to advertising rules for working with children and adolescents while at the same time strengthening protection requirements. Google Ads’ policy on images of children states that ads must not contain:
  • Large portraits of children’s faces
  • Images that may draw attention to children’s physical characteristics
  • Content that could be used to identify a specific child
This rule applies to all types of advertising: search, display, video, and remarketing. In addition, Google has strengthened protections for users under 13: showing them personalized ads based on their activity is prohibited, as is collecting data related to child-directed content. In the US and Canada, specific restrictions have been introduced on targeting ads related to housing listings, employment opportunities, and credit offers.
Why is Google so strict? Because the company understands that using children’s faces in marketing is not just a safety issue, it’s an ethical one. Google does not want to be a platform that helps companies exploit children for commercial purposes. When people see an ad with a large portrait of a child, they subconsciously sense a manipulation that many perceive as unethical.

Experts recommend using alternative approaches:

  • Photos of children from a distance or in groups (without focusing on faces)
  • Photos of parents with children where the children’s faces are out of focus or blurred
  • Illustrations, graphics, or icons instead of real photos
  • Photos of children’s hands, feet, or backs (without identification)
  • Symbolic images associated with childhood (toys, school supplies)

E-E-A-T and content safety: how Google assesses trust

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Google uses the E-E-A-T framework to assess content quality: Experience (experience), Expertise (expertise), Authoritativeness (authoritativeness), Trustworthiness (trustworthiness). In recent years the company has added another criterion: Safety, that is, content safety.

This means that even if your content is high-quality, well-written, contains useful information and comes from an authoritative source, Google may lower its priority if the content contains potential safety risks, especially for children.

When you place large portraits of children on your site, you automatically lower the Trustworthiness metric. Users (and algorithms) perceive this as a potential risk. Even if you use photos with good intentions, the system may interpret it as manipulation or negligence regarding children’s safety.

Users subconsciously trust content that looks safe and ethical. If you post photos of children without a clear necessity, users may question the purpose of such placement. This creates cognitive dissonance and lowers trust.

GDPR requirements and parental consent

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In Europe, if you publish a photograph of a child’s face, you must have written consent from a parent or guardian. This is not a recommendation: it is a legal requirement.

The GDPR states that children’s personal data (and a photo of a face is personal data) may be processed only with the consent of a parent or guardian. Moreover, consent must be:
  • Informed — the parent must understand how and where the data will be used
  • Voluntary — the parent must not be forced to give consent
  • Specific — consent must be given for a particular use (for example, for publication on a website), not in general terms
  • Documented — you must have proof of consent
If you violate these requirements, you can be fined up to 20 million euros or 4% of the company’s annual turnover (whichever is greater).

Google’s practice on this matter is as follows: if large portraits of children are posted on your site, Google assumes that you may not have the necessary consent and lowers the priority of such content in search results. This is a kind of precautionary measure, not for a violation but for the potential risk of a violation.

Risks of using children’s photos in marketing

Legal risks start with the requirements of GDPR and COPPA. If you publish a child’s photo without the parent’s consent, you are breaking the law. Fines can be huge. In addition, you may receive a claim from a parent who will demand the removal of their child’s photo. This creates reputational damage and diverts resources to disputes.

The risks of child exploitation are the most serious. When you publish a close-up portrait of a child, you cannot control who will download that portrait and how they will use it. There is a real risk that the photo will be used for purposes you never intended.
Reputational risks are often overlooked. If users find out that you are using children’s photos without consent, or if your site becomes associated with child exploitation, it can lead to widespread condemnation on social networks, loss of customers, and long-term damage to the brand.

SEO risks: Google will lower the priority of your content, and you will lose traffic and conversions.

Best practices for posting photos of children on your website

If you do decide to use photos of children on your website, here’s what you must do:

  • Obtain written parental consent. This is not optional.
  • Create a consent form that clearly describes how and where the photos will be used. Keep copies of the consent.
  • Avoid close-up portraits of faces. Use photos of children from a distance, in groups, or with blurred faces. Use photos of children’s hands, feet, or backs.
  • Use illustrations and graphics instead of real photos.
  • Use context that demonstrates safety.
  • If you publish a child’s photo, make sure the context clearly shows that it is safe, educational, or family-oriented content.
  • Add metadata and markup. Use structured data (schema markup) to indicate that the content contains images of children. This helps Google interpret the content correctly.
  • Regularly review and update content. If you obtained consent to use a photo but a parent later requests its removal, delete it immediately.
  • Keep a registry of all consents and ensure you comply with all requirements.
  • Consider alternatives.
  • Instead of photos of children, use photos of parents or families, or avoid photos of people altogether.
  • Use illustrations, graphics, or videos that showcase your product or service without using children’s faces.

Child safety, an investment in your business

Compliance with Google’s policies on child safety and international personal data protection standards: it’s not just a matter of meeting requirements. It’s an investment in the long-term success of your business.

When you take child safety seriously, you demonstrate that your business is ethical, reliable, and trustworthy. This enhances perceived trustworthiness, boosts your site’s E-E-A-T, and ultimately leads to better SEO rankings and higher conversions.

Check your marketing materials right now. If you use large portraits of children, start the process of replacing them with safer alternatives. If you publish photos of children without parental consent, begin collecting consent or remove the photos. This may require time and resources, but it is the right decision for both the children and your business.