Could your child’s public school be playing “big brother” to its students? For some students, their schools just may be spying on them – even in the comfort and privacy of their own homes.
In February, a Pennsylvania Court faced a case where a public school was accused of spying on students via the webcams attached to school-issued laptops.
According to the initial complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the Lower Merion School District used remotely activated webcams on school-issued laptops to spy on students’ home activities. As CNN reports, the lawsuit claims that Blake J. Robbins, a student at Harriton Senior High School, became aware of the spying in November 2009, when an assistant principal told Robbins that he had been caught via the webcam engaging in “improper behavior” in his home.
This video reports the story referred to above.
It is yet unknown what the boy was doing in his bedroom or whether he received disciplinary action from the school. Nevertheless, the case is receiving widespread national attention and prompted nationwide concerns from students and parents.
The School District’s Response
Webcams Used Only for Locating Missing Laptops
The school district has issued a letter to parents admitting that spyware was installed on the laptops that the schools issued to students but maintaining that the feature “was only used