Back to school safety: Cranford, NJ cops share social media tip

The excitement of a new year has lots of New Jersey families proudly sharing their now traditional "back to school" photos of students.

Cranford Police have shared a light-hearted photo of their own featuring mascot McGruff the Crime Dog to demonstrate which photos should be kept private and which are safer for social media posting.

closeup of McGruff safety tip (Cranford Police via Facebook)

In a side by side on the department's official Facebook page Thursday, police labeled one photo with lots of personal information — including the student's name, school, grade level, teacher and other details.

That was labeled as one to save for showing to only "people you trust."

A more generic, "first day of school 2021" — without the student's name — was deemed best for posting to any social media accounts.

How NJ is going after child predators

While people might think privacy settings are sufficient for protecting their photos, those parameters might fall short of expectations.

On Facebook for example, a user cannot prevent people from saving, downloading and sharing a photo that is made either public or shared with friends, according to the social media website, itself.

LOOK: Here are the pets banned in each state

Because the regulation of exotic animals is left to states, some organizations, including The Humane Society of the United States, advocate for federal, standardized legislation that would ban owning large cats, bears, primates, and large poisonous snakes as pets.

Read on to see which pets are banned in your home state, as well as across the nation.

NJ teachers and educators caught in sex crime busts

Over the past few years, state lawmakers have taken on the challenge of dealing with accused child predators among the ranks of teachers and educators.

In 2018, the so-called “pass the trash” law went into effect, requiring stricter New Jersey school background checks related to child abuse and sexual misconduct.

The follow individuals were arrested over the past several years. Some have been convicted and sentenced to prison, while others have accepted plea deals for probation.

Others cases are still pending, including some court delays amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

50 Most Popular Chain Restaurants in America

YouGov investigated the most popular dining brands in the country, and Stacker compiled the list to give readers context on the findings. Read on to look through America's vast and divergent variety of restaurants—maybe you'll even find a favorite or two.

Filed Under: child predators, Cranford, NJ Schools, Union County

Categories: New Jersey News