Key takeaways
- Only use a service that explains, in plain words and without you hunting for it, what happens to the photo.
- The photo should be used to make your book and nothing else: not sold, not used for adverts, not used to train AI.
- One-off uploads should be deleted when the book is ready, and anything saved should be deletable by you.
- You can reduce the risk further with a plain background and a tight crop of the face.
We run a company that asks parents to upload photos of their children, so we think about this question a lot, and we’d rather you asked it of us than not. You don’t need to understand AI or read a privacy policy end to end. You need answers to eight questions. A company that deserves your photo will already have answered them somewhere obvious.
The eight questions
1. What exactly is the photo used for? The answer should be narrow: to illustrate your book. Anything broader (“to improve our services”, “for product development”) is a reason to keep looking.
2. Is it ever sold, used for advertising or used to train AI? You want a flat no to all three, in writing.
3. How long is it kept? Two answers are reasonable. Deleted once the book is ready, for a one-off upload. Or kept until you delete it, if you’ve chosen to save a character so you don’t upload again next time. “Kept indefinitely” with no delete button is not reasonable.
4. Who else sees it? Photo-illustrated books are drawn by AI image services, so the photo has to go to whichever service does the drawing. That’s normal. What matters is that the company tells you.
5. Is the finished book private? It should be visible only to you until you decide otherwise, ideally with a share switch you can turn off again.
6. How is payment handled? Card details should go through a hosted checkout such as Stripe, so the company never sees your card number.
7. Can you delete everything? Characters, books, the account. And there should be a person to email if something goes wrong.
8. Is there an actual company behind it? A name, a contact page, a privacy policy. If you can’t work out who runs the site, don’t upload.
The one-minute test
If you can’t find the answer to “is my child’s photo used to train AI?” within a minute of looking, pick a different service.
How we answer them
Since we’re asking you to hold other companies to this, here are our own answers for I Am In The Story, taken from its FAQ and privacy policy:
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Used for | Drawing your book, nothing else |
| Sold, adverts, AI training | Never |
| Kept for | One-off uploads deleted when the book is ready; saved characters until you delete them |
| Sent to | The AI service that draws the pages |
| Book visibility | Private unless you turn on a share link |
| Card details | Handled by Stripe’s hosted checkout, never stored by us |
| Who runs it | Softaware Commerce; replies to emails are read by a person |
One more thing worth knowing: the child in our public sample books isn’t real. We used an AI-generated photo for those on purpose, so that no family’s child appears on a public page.
Taking a photo that gives away less
- Use a plain wall or the sky as the background, not the house, the car or the school gate.
- Skip school uniforms and anything with a name on it.
- Crop tightly to the face. The illustration only needs the face.
- Most phones strip location data when you share a photo, but a screenshot of the photo removes it for certain.
- Share the finished book with family directly, not as a public link on social media.
So, is it safe?
It can be. Choose a service that answers the eight questions plainly, keep the photo simple, and be careful where you share the result. If you want to see what happens next, here’s how the book is made.
Frequently asked questions
Do personalised book companies keep my child's photo?
It depends, which is the point of asking. On I Am In The Story, photos uploaded for a single book are deleted as soon as the book is ready. If you choose to save a character, its photos stay until you delete the character.
Will my child's photo be used to train AI?
It shouldn't be, and a good service will say so directly. I Am In The Story states that photos are never sold, used for advertising or used to train models.
Can strangers see my child's book?
They shouldn't be able to. On I Am In The Story a book is private to your account unless you switch on a share link, and you can switch it off again.
Pick a fairy tale, add your child
Classic stories children already know by name — each one retold with your child on every page.
The Little Mermaid
Curiosity that reaches from the deep to the shore
Make this book with your child →
Rapunzel
A tower, a lantern-lit sky and hair as long as the story
Make this book with your child →
The Unicorn and the Rainbow
Seven colors, one brave little heart
Make this book with your child →
Goldilocks and the Three Bears
Too hot, too cold, just right
Make this book with your child →
