As if there weren’t enough problems to head off already when itcomes to elder care, now there’s the potential for seniors’ abusevia social media.

That’s according to an NPR/ProPublica report that says not onlyare such instances occurring, they’re tough to prosecute.

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Photos of elders in embarrassing or compromising positions thatare posted online in such applications as Snapchat may offeramusement to social media aficionados, but they’re not necessarilyillegal — despite the fact that they are clearly abusive to theelders whose images are captured.

Nursing homes and authorities alike are learning that lawswritten to protect the elderly predate social media to the extentthat sharing a privacy-violating photo of a senior by an employeeat a long-term care facility won’t necessarily provide grounds foreither disciplinary action or prosecution.

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The article gives an example of a senior in a care facility inIowa whose photo, depicting him with trousers down and fecesevident on his legs and hand, was shared on Snapchat by a certifiednursing assistant. But the relevant Iowa law bars “sexualexploitation of a dependent adult by a caretaker,” a condition thatdid not apply since the photo did not show the patient’sgenitals.

Although the facility fired the nurse assistant, there wasnothing the state could do to discipline her, and she can continueto work with the elderly anywhere in the state. And whilefacilities often ban employees from carrying cellphones while inresident areas, it’s a tough rule to enforce, particularly amongyounger employees who, like other young people, often seem glued totheir phones.

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Not only are authorities struggling to catch up, previousProPublica coverage caught the attention of Sen. Charles Grassley,R-Iowa, who has written to various social media companies to askwhat they are doing to prevent such instances. Snapchat, inparticular, lacks the means for someone to file a complaint onsomeone else’s behalf, requiring that the injured party make thecomplaint — which, in the case of elderly patients with dementia orcompletely unfamiliar with social media, is clearly impossible.

And the U.S Department of Justice is reviewing the situation, asare other regulators — but while new regulations are “in the works”at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the nursinghome industry is taking a more proactive approach, conductingtraining and sometimes even hiring third-party companies to monitorsocial media.