I stumbled onto this article by accident and was more than a little shocked to see "Before & After" pictures directly from LBT were used in the article.

I'm just curious if the people in the pics were asked their permission before they were used?

http://www.businessinsider.com/before-and-after-weight-loss-lapband-surgery-2013-5

On Facebook' date=' we can at least lock it down so no one except 'friends' can see our posts and pics. I guess I always knew this very public but I figured no one would stumble onto a Lap Band forum unless they're a bariatric patient or researching it. When I saw all those pictures on that website, it was a huge reminder how little (if any) control we have over anything on this website. I don't want my pictures all over the internet. I hated to do it, but I felt I had no choice but to remove all my photos from this site.[/quote']

I'll be taking mine down too I don't want to be on the internet either....

...and I've deleted every pic of me from the website. It's just not worth the risks.

Well, at least I now have a mental picture of you :-) Last week I came very close to putting my face up here, but decided to go with some beautiful nature instead :ph34r:

this made me cry..it truly did, it took alot for me to respond

if i would have saw a pic of me, i would have not been able to take it

i am that insecure of myself...i know i am a fat girl

i dont need anyone to tell me

as bad as large people feel about themselves, people who are a**ssholes post such awful things

the obese population are the easiest targets in my opinion...i am super duper aware

of what i look like..before and after......i live it everyday...

like the others, i removed my pictures as best i could

and will remove the others when the site allows me to

this made me cry..it truly did, it took alot for me to respond

if i would have saw a pic of me, i would have not been able to take it

i am that insecure of myself...i know i am a fat girl

i dont need anyone to tell me

as bad as large people feel about themselves, people who are a**ssholes post such awful things

the obese population are the easiest targets in my opinion...i am super duper aware

of what i look like..before and after......i live it everyday...

like the others, i removed my pictures as best i could

and will remove the others when the site allows me to

((hugs))

I'm sorry, I didn't want to upset you. I just thought I needed to share this here so everyone could be aware how unsecured and public our pictures are.

((hugs))

I'm sorry, I didn't want to upset you. I just thought I needed to share this here so everyone could be aware how unsecured and public our pictures are.

it wasnt you...its just (life)

hub read this and asked what was wrong

he told me to put my newest pic on my profile, 16 months post

why...he said if one person..sees it...maybe just maybe they can think

(me too if i try)..he is right..nothing to be ashamed of

I don't have any pictures of me on here. I do have some on Facebook but no one would connect my real name with my various internet handles I don't think. Who would want to anyway? I just googled my name and all of my net handles and not one picture of me came up. Not even from Facebook. Just lucky I guess.

Fat people have always been targets though.

I have a lot of pics on Facebook, ironically I'm very open about having the Lap Band on there too. But, it's securely locked down and no one can see anything unless they're on my friends' list.

I have to be careful- I have a freak'n batsh*t crazy scary ex that I have gone to great lengths to assure he can't find me nor my children. He also has no idea I've lost 230 pounds since he last saw me- in fact I actually went right by him recently and he had no clue it was even me. I don't want that to change nor for him to use web pictures to somehow track me down again.

Carolina girl & missy - I'm so sorry that pictures got placed out side of the site & I'm glad you deleted your pics. I almost put my picture up because I felt a that I had lost enough weight where I wouldn't be embarrassed.

People are so mean - I honestly couldn't talk about these things with anyone else, because other people don't understand & I'm a private person. I honestly don't complain about anything dealing with my surgery because I don't want a sneed comment my way saying that I chose this.

You two have lost massive amounts of weight and you both have helped me with things on here and I appreciate it very much.

Sent from my iPhone using LapBandTalk

Anything we voluntarily put out there on the internet is open game to everyone......we freely gave it up....

I know at my Dr.'s office, (Bariatric Weight Loss Center), I signed a release giving them permission to use pictures they taken of me....but then that's all about HIPPA, I have release forms signed when I use images of my patients for illustrations, in-services, teaching etc, or I have to use black marker over their eyes/faces....

I have a friend who operates an Institute in Sweden, and travels worldwide giving lectures, he is still using many of my slides of patients, most photos were taken over 25 years ago....but again, he has their faces blocked out with marker, and is only interested from the neck down.

Another thing to be aware of is that this site may be farmed for photo content by nerfarious marketers who will use our before and after pictures (well, not mine, as I'm not yet an "after") to push their acai berry, kale pills, enzyme or whatever snake oil they are selling to the public. Many high-traffic weight loss bloggers have found their photos next to "before" and "after" pics on those pop up ads that appear on your facebook page, without their consent (obviously). The marketer will even write a fake testimony below the stolen pictures, such as "This pill saved my life! ~ J.L., Kansas City."

While I applaud the people they showed I'm a little surprised that they didn't choose other people in the forums that have had some amazing success. It's almost like the writer of the article chose pictures where the before and after's didn't look all that different, chose intermediate pictures for afters, or ones that had lots of loose skin? Maybe I'm just cranky this morning and I am reading into it too much but I'm just surprised at the pic selection.

Another thing to be aware of is that this site may be farmed for photo content by nerfarious marketers who will use our before and after pictures (well, not mine, as I'm not yet an "after") to push their acai berry, kale pills, enzyme or whatever snake oil they are selling to the public. Many high-traffic weight loss bloggers have found their photos next to "before" and "after" pics on those pop up ads that appear on your facebook page, without their consent (obviously). The marketer will even write a fake testimony below the stolen pictures, such as "This pill saved my life! ~ J.L., Kansas City."

That's another excellent point and something for people to be aware of!!