Privacy Advocate Demands Digital Protections for New Student Safety Measures

Department of Education Federal Commission on School Safety recommendations for improving student safety must include “appropriate privacy protections,” Future of Privacy Forum Director-Education Privacy Project Amelia Vance told the commission Wednesday. Protecting student privacy and equity is important, she said, with schools deploying devices for social media monitoring, video surveillance with police access and visitor monitoring systems. She noted Florida plans to create a database combining data from social media, law enforcement and social services agencies, and Texas plans to scan and analyze social media data and private messages between individuals and groups.