Posts Tagged ‘privacy issues’

surveillance technology and education

https://www.edsurge.com/news/2019-06-10-is-school-surveillance-going-too-far-privacy-leaders-urge-a-slow-down

New York’s Lockport City School District, which is using public funds from a Smart Schools bond to help pay for a reported $3.8 million security system that uses facial recognition technology to identify individuals who don’t belong on campus

The Lockport case has drawn the attention of national media, ire of many parents and criticism from the New York Civil Liberties Union, among other privacy groups.

the Future of Privacy Forum (FPF), a nonprofit think tank based in Washington, D.C., published an animated video that illustrates the possible harm that surveillance technology can cause to children and the steps schools should take before making any decisions, such as identifying specific goals for the technology and establishing who will have access to the data and for how long.

A few days later, the nonprofit Center for Democracy and Technology, in partnership with New York University’s Brennan Center for Justice, released a brief examining the same topic.

My note: same considerations were relayed to the SCSU SOE dean in regard of the purchase of Premethean and its installation in SOE building without discussion with faculty, who work with technology. This information was also shared with the dean: https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2018/10/31/students-data-privacy/

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more on surveillance in education in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=surveillance+education

Facial Recognition Technology in schools

With Safety in Mind, Schools Turn to Facial Recognition Technology. But at What Cost?

By Emily Tate     Jan 31, 2019

https://www.edsurge.com/news/2019-01-31-with-safety-in-mind-schools-turn-to-facial-recognition-technology-but-at-what-cost

SAFR (Secure, Accurate Facial Recognition)

violent deaths in schools have stayed relatively constant over the last 30 years, according to data from the National Center for Education Statistics. But then there’s the emotive reality, which is that every time another event like Sandy Hook or Parkland occurs, many educators and students feel they are in peril when they go to school.

RealNetworks, a Seattle-based software company that was popular in the 1990s for its audio and video streaming services but has since expanded to offer other tools, including SAFR (Secure, Accurate Facial Recognition), its AI-supported facial recognition software.

After installing new security cameras, purchasing a few Apple devices and upgrading the school’s Wi-Fi, St. Therese was looking at a $24,000 technology tab.

The software is programmed to allow authorized users into the building with a smile.

“Facial recognition isn’t a panacea. It is just a tool,” says Collins, who focuses on education privacy issues.

Another part of the problem with tools like SAFR, is it provides a false sense of security.

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more on surveillance in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=surveillance

more on privacy in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=privacy

Encyclopedia of Criminal Activities and the Deep Web

>>>>>>> Publishing Opportunity <<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Encyclopedia of Criminal Activities and the Deep Web

Countries all over the world are seeing significant increases in criminal activity through the use of technological tools. Such crimes as identity theft, cyberattacks, drug trafficking, and human trafficking are conducted through the deep and dark web, while social media is utilized by murderers, sex offenders, and pedophiles to elicit information and contact their victims. As criminals continue to harness technology to their advantage, law enforcement and government officials are left to devise alternative strategies to learn more about all aspects of these modern criminal patterns and behavior, to preserve the safety of society, and to ensure that proper justice is served. Regrettably, the lack of adequate research findings on these modern criminal activities is limiting everyone’s abilities to devise effective strategies and programs to combat these modern technology-related criminal activities.

In an effort to compile the most current research on this topic, a new major reference work titled Encyclopedia of Criminal Activities and the Deep Web is currently being developed. This comprehensive Encyclopedia is projected to encompass expert insights about the nature of these criminal activities, how they are conducted, and societal and technological limitations. It will also explore new methods and processes for monitoring and regulating the use of these tools, such as social media, online forums, and online ads, as well as hidden areas of the internet including the deep and dark web. Additionally, this Encyclopedia seeks to offer strategies for predicting and preventing criminals from using technology as a means to track, stalk, and lure their victims.

You are cordially invited to share your research to be featured in this Encyclopedia by submitting a chapter proposal/abstract using the link on the formal call for papers page here. If your chapter proposal is accepted, guidelines for preparing your full chapter submission (which should be between 5,000-7,500 total words in length) can be accessed at: http://www.igi-global.com/publish/contributor-resources/ (under the “For Authors” heading – “Encyclopedia Chapter Organization and Formatting”).

Recommended topics for papers include, but are not limited to:

  • Bitcoin and Crime
  • Botnets and Crime
  • Child Exploitation
  • Contract Killing
  • Criminology
  • Cryptocurrency
  • Cyber Espionage
  • Cyber Stalking
  • Cybercrime
  • Cybercriminals
  • Cybersecurity Legislation
  • Cyberterrorism Fraud
  • Dark Web
  • Dark Web Vendors
  • Darknets
  • Data Privacy
  • Dating Websites and Crime
  • Deep Web
  • Drug Trafficking
  • E-Banking Fraud
  • Email Scams
  • Fraud and Internet
  • Gaming and Crime
  • Government Regulations of the Dark Web
  • Hacking and Crime
  • Hacktivism
  • Human Trafficking
  • Identity Theft
  • International Regulations of the Dark Web
  • Internet Privacy
  • Internet Regulations
  • Internet Safety & Crime
  • Online Advertisement Websites and Crime
  • Online Blackmail
  • Online Forums and Crime
  • Online Hate Crimes
  • Online Predators
  • Online Privacy
  • Social Media Deception
  • Social Networking Traps
  • Undercover Dark Web Busts
  • Undercover Operations
  • Vigilante Justice
  • Virtual Currencies & Crime
  • Whistleblowing

IMPORTANT DATES: Chapter Proposal Submission Deadline: October 15, 2018; Full Chapters Due: December 15, 2018

Note: There are no publication fees, however, contributors will be requested to provide a courtesy to their fellow colleagues by serving as a peer reviewer for this project for at least 2-3 articles. This will ensure the highest level of integrity and quality for the publication. 

Should you have any questions regarding this publication, or this invitation, please do not hesitate to contact: EncyclopediaCADW@igi-global.com

Mehdi Khosrow-Pour, DBA
Editor-in-Chief
Encyclopedia of Criminal Activities and the Deep Web
EncyclopediaCADW@igi-global.com

AI tracks students writings

Schools are using AI to track what students write on their computers

By Simone Stolzoff August 19, 2018
50 million k-12 students in the US
Under the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA), any US school that receives federal funding is required to have an internet-safety policy. As school-issued tablets and Chromebook laptops become more commonplace, schools must install technological guardrails to keep their students safe. For some, this simply means blocking inappropriate websites. Others, however, have turned to software companies like GaggleSecurly, and GoGuardian to surface potentially worrisome communications to school administrators
In an age of mass school-shootings and increased student suicides, SMPs Safety Management Platforms can play a vital role in preventing harm before it happens. Each of these companies has case studies where an intercepted message helped save lives.
Over 50% of teachers say their schools are one-to-one (the industry term for assigning every student a device of their own), according to a 2017 survey from Freckle Education
But even in an age of student suicides and school shootings, when do security precautions start to infringe on students’ freedoms?
When the Gaggle algorithm surfaces a word or phrase that may be of concern—like a mention of drugs or signs of cyberbullying—the “incident” gets sent to human reviewers before being passed on to the school. Using AI, the software is able to process thousands of student tweets, posts, and status updates to look for signs of harm.
SMPs help normalize surveillance from a young age. In the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal at Facebook and other recent data breaches from companies like Equifax, we have the opportunity to teach kids the importance of protecting their online data
in an age of increased school violence, bullying, and depression, schools have an obligation to protect their students. But the protection of kids’ personal information is also a matter of their safety

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more on cybersecurity in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=cybersecurity

more on surveillance  in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=surveillance

more on privacy in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=privacy

privacy and cell phones

In Major Privacy Win, Supreme Court Rules Police Need Warrant To Track Your Cellphone

June 22, 201810:41 AM ET

Cellphone providers routinely keep location information for customers to help improve service. And until now, the prevailing legal theory was that if an individual voluntarily shares his information with a third party — for instance, by signing up for cellphone service — police can get that information without a search warrant.

On Friday, the Supreme Court blew a hole in that theory. Writing for the court majority, Chief Justice John Roberts said that cellphone location information is a “near perfect” tool for government surveillance, analogous to an electronic monitoring ankle bracelet.

While Friday’s decision may limit the government’s access to cellphone data, it has no impact on the ability of private companies to amass, use and sell their customers’ information. That is because the Fourth Amendment only limits government conduct, not private conduct. Only Congress, in enacting legislation, can limit how private companies amass and use information.

see also:
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2015/12/03/power-privacy-internet/

Aral Balkan: https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/lib290/2018/03/01/duckduckgo-privacy-free-service/
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more on privacy and surveillance in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=privacy

https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=surveillance

 

Facebook European privacy law

Facebook moves 1.5bn users out of reach of new European privacy law

Company moves responsibility for users from Ireland to the US where privacy laws are less strict

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/apr/19/facebook-moves-15bn-users-out-of-reach-of-new-european-privacy-law

Facebook has moved more than 1.5 billion users out of reach of European privacy law, despite a promise from Mark Zuckerberg to apply the “spirit” of the legislation globally.

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Facebook To Offer Users Opt-Outs That Comply With New European Privacy Rules

April 19, 20182:50 AM ET https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/04/19/603824213/facebook-to-offer-users-opt-outs-that-comply-with-new-european-privacy-rules

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who offered congressional testimony last week, has also been asked to appear before the European Parliament.

As we reported earlier this week, a federal judge in California ruled that Facebook could be sued in a class-action lawsuit brought by users in Illinois who say the social media company improperly used facial recognition to upload photographs.

Also on Wednesday, TechCrunch reports that Facebook is investigating a security research report showing that its user data is vulnerable to third-party JavaScript trackers embedded on websites offering the “Login With Facebook” feature.

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more on privacy in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=privacy

VR AR MR in education

7 Things You Should Know About AR/VR/MR

https://library.educause.edu/resources/2017/10/7-things-you-should-know-about-ar-vr-mr 
Augmented reality can be described as experiencing the real world with an overlay of additional computer generated content. In contrast, virtual reality immerses a user in an entirely simulated environment, while mixed or merged reality blends real and virtual worlds in ways through which the physical and the digital can interact. AR, VR, and MR offer new opportunities to create a psychological sense of immersive presence in an environment that feels real enough to be viewed, experienced, explored, and manipulated. These technologies have the potential to democratize learning by giving everyone access to immersive experiences that were once restricted to relatively few learners.
In Grinnell College’s Immersive Experiences Lab http://gciel.sites.grinnell.edu/, teams of faculty, staff, and students collaborate on research projects, then use 3D, VR, and MR technologies as a platform to synthesize and present their findings.
In terms of equity, AR, VR, and MR have the potential to democratize learning by giving all learners access to immersive experiences
downsides :
relatively little research about the most effective ways to use these technologies as instructional tools. Combined, these factors can be disincentives for institutions to invest in the equipment, facilities, and staffing that can be required to support these systems. AR, VR, and MR technologies raise concerns about personal privacy and data security. Further, at least some of these tools and applications currently fail to meet accessibility standards. The user experience in some AR, VR, and MR applications can be intensely emotional and even disturbing (my note: but can be also used for empathy literacy),
immersing users in recreated, remote, or even hypothetical environments as small as a molecule or as large as a universe, allowing learners to experience “reality” from multiple perspectives.

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more on VR, AR, MX in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=virtual+reality

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