The Duchess of Sussex has defended posting private family images online, on the eve of her daughter’s fifth birthday.

Meghan Markle has faced criticism for sharing photos of her children, Archie and Lilibet, while also speaking out publicly about the dangers of social media to young people.

Meghan regularly posts photos of her family, including husband Prince Harry, to her 4.6 million followers on Instagram.

Recent snaps have included a photo of Harry with a baby Archie sleeping on his chest, to mark the little boy’s seventh birthday in May.

The image, one of two posted, was particularly notable for showing Archie’s face. Most of Meghan’s Instagram photos show the children from the back or with their faces obscured.

The California-based duchess also shared images from a family trip to Disneyland, including one showing Lilibet embracing a performer dressed as Elsa from Disney’s Frozen. Other photos and videos have also featured the children with Meghan working on her As Ever Netflix show.

With Lilibet turning five on Thursday, speculation is rife online that there will be a new photo to mark the occasion.

But critics also argue that the posts contradict a speech Meghan gave at the World Health Organisation in Geneva just two weeks ago, in which she spoke about the dangers of online bullying.

The duchess spoke at the inauguration of The Lost Screen Memorial, which features 50 illuminated boxes showing a phone lock screen image of a child who has died because of social media bullying.

“Not statistics. Not avatars. Not data points. Children. Each name belonged to a child who was loved beyond measure. A child whose laughter once filled a kitchen. Whose shoes once waited by a front door. Whose future once felt limitless,” she said.

“Now their faces ask the world questions we can no longer avoid: How many more millions of children will be harmed by products that, while innovative, are still designed without sufficient safeguards? When will children be able to enjoy the extraordinary potential of technology without it compromising their wellbeing?”

Among the photos the duchess have shared that have caused controversy was one of her preparing to fly to Geneva for the speech.

It showed Meghan in her walk-in wardrobe with Lilibet kneeling at her feet. The suit Meghan later wore in Geneva was also clearly pictured.

“The day before she went and did that speech, she posted a picture of herself and her daughter and then literally had the Armani label out of the Armani suit that she’s wearing to a very important speech,” British brand and culture expert Nick Ede told Newsweek.

“She can commercialise her social media, obviously as an adult, but it just felt very hypocritical. We know she’s a hypocrite, so there’s no two ways about it.”

Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams, meanwhile, said showing the children only from the rear was curious.

“The Sussexes are tireless in self-promotion,” he told GB News.

“Their habit of photographing their children from the back so their faces are usually not revealed is very curious. That is obviously up to them, but it is odd.”

But this week, a spokesperson for Meghan has denied any clash between the speech and her social media posts.

“The duchess has always been clear that there is a distinction between sharing moments from her life and exposing her children to public scrutiny,” they told Newsweek.

“By obscuring their faces, she is demonstrating the very principle she advocates for: Giving children privacy, agency, and protection in an increasingly digital world.”

The spokesperson said the difference actually reinforced Meghan’s message – “that parents can choose to share family experiences while still taking deliberate steps to protect identities, privacy, and digital footprint”.

Meghan and Harry have long focused on the potential harms of social media. While the couple was in Australia in April, Harry spoke in favour of the strict social media ban for under-16s.

“Australia took the lead. Your government was the first country in the world to bring about a ban,” he said.

Meghan spent years without social media, after deactivating her personal accounts when her relationship with Harry was formalised in 2017. She returned to Instagram only in 2025.