Is Google spying on students using the laptops that it sells to schools?
That’s what a nonprofit privacy group alleges in a complaint filed with the Federal Trade Commission, as reported by Amy Kraft with CBS News. The Electronic Frontier Foundation says Google has been using the “Sync” feature on its Chrome Internet browser to “to track, store and data-mine (for non-advertising purposes) records of all the Internet sites a student visits, search terms used, results clicked on, videos watched on YouTube, and passwords saved.” The Sync feature is the default option on the Chromebook laptops.
“Minors shouldn’t be tracked or used as guinea pigs, with their data treated as a profit center,” Electronic Frontier Foundation’s Staff Attorney Nate Cardozo told Kraft. “If Google wants to use students’ data to ‘improve Google products,’ then it needs to get express consent from parents.”
The complaint also accuses Google of violating its Student Privacy Pledge using its Google Apps for Education service. Google responded to the complaint by insisting that the Sync data’s only purpose is to improve the service. It also said Google Apps for Education accounts are only used for students to collaborate with each other over email and Google Docs.
“While we appreciate the EFF’s focus on student data privacy, we are confident that our tools comply with both the law and our promises,” said Jonathan Rochelle, director of Google Apps for Education. “We are committed to ensuring that K-12 student personal information is not used to target ads in these services, and in some cases we show no ads at all.”
Jason Russell is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.
