His presence means Christmas is just around the corner as he takes messages back to Santa at the North Pole, but the American Civil Liberties Union is concerned about the message being delivered to children by the Elf on a Shelf, particularly when it comes to surveillance. 

The toy, which is based on a 2005 children’s book, is supposed to be a fun and novel idea that families incorporate into their Christmas traditions. 

Parents tell their children how the elf magically comes to life each night between Thanksgiving and Christmas in order to report back to Santa about the child’s behavior. It then returns to the home to a different spot than the night before, but the child must not touch it, or it will lose its magic.

But the ACLU together with a number of other privacy and civil rights organizations believe the elf to be invasive, creepy – and even dangerous.

Elf on a Shelf is a Christmas tradition for millions of families across the country

The concern is that the elf teaches children the wrong lessons when it comes to privacy and and makes children acclimatized to be being monitored and passively accept constantly being watched by an unseen authority figure. 

‘I don’t want to sound like a Grinch, but we shouldn’t be celebrating seasonal surveillance,’ said Albert Fox Cahn from the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, a civil rights and privacy group, to the New York Times. ‘It’s really a terrible message for kids.  

‘No one should be looking at you in your bedroom without consent,’ Cahn added. ‘There is a cost to normalizing surveillance, even in the most adorable ways.

‘I don’t want to be the first one to take Santa Claus to court for invasion of privacy, but consent matters, and having privacy matters,’ he said.

The premise is based upon the elf constantly monitoring children’s behavior in the run up to Christmas Day with the information being relayed to Santa

Some psychologists have warned that Elf on the Shelf, also encourages lying to children, questions the trustworthiness of parents and encourages gullibility in children instead of critical thinking.

Such unintended consequences are entirely disputed by The Lumistella Company, which owns the Elf on the Shelf.

‘Santa’s Scout Elves don’t just help to keep up with the Nice List; they also share with Santa how families are spreading the spirit of Christmas,’ the company said in a statement. 

‘Many children note that their favorite moments throughout each season include waking up to see where the family’s Scout Elf has landed and the humorous scenes they sometimes set up. Our hope is that the Elf on the Shelf will create cheerful holiday moments and precious family memories that will last a lifetime.’

American Civil Liberties Union along with surveillance and privacy watchdogs say it teaches children the wrong lessons and is invasive and creepy

Despite the innocent image portrayed by the company behind the toy, some civil rights group see something sinister about the elf. 

‘I know a lot of families just see this as a fun thing, but it’s worth thinking about the messages it’s giving to children about surveillance by authorities,’ Jay Stanley, of the  ACLU Speech, Privacy and Technology Project to the Times. 

‘Personally, I consider success as a parent to be teaching my kids to do the right thing even when nobody is watching, whether they be from the North Pole or anywhere else. Maybe these are elves that should be left on store shelves.’

It is a view echoed by another group, the Electronic Privacy Information Center.

‘If kids think they are always being watched, even when the watcher is a magical elf, that can have real effects on how they see themselves in the world,’ Caitriona Fitzgerald said. 

‘Arguing children need to grow up knowing they have private spaces of their own where they can be independent.’ 

Some psychologists say Elf on the Shelf encourages lying to children, questions parents trustworthiness and encourages gullibility in children

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