Good evening and welcome back to another post from ToBeSecured. Within a week, there's already a lot of information that I would like to share with you. If you haven't already, please go and check out Cyber Tuesdays Episode 38 either via Instagram @ToBeSecured or YouTube by typing in ToBeSecured Cyber Tuesdays Series. In this episode, I gave a recap of some features included within the new iOS 14 update as well an update on the TikTok application being banned in the US. Also, subscribe and follow if you aren't already to receive updates and announcements especially with October approaching!
About a week ago, I was scrolling on Twitter of course and I came across a tweet that said "Web cam exams are an invasion of privacy" and it reminded me of an essay I wrote for my Legal Issues course while in undergrad.
With a lot of my followers being students and the pandemic forcing students to take online classes, there are some requirements that a few students, myself included, hate. One requirement is having a laptop that has a camera embedded for testing/class sessions.
Most of the time I spent in the library was used to take exams/quizzes or for working. I would use their computers since most of them already had the necessary software installed, such as Respondus lockdown browser. Of course with remote learning being in effect now across several states, if not all, schools/universities utilize these services as a way to track academic misconduct. I think we can all agree that some quizzes and tests shouldn't require a camera going around your room to make sure no one is in there. It's definitely an invasion of privacy and we aren't able to opt-out because if you don't take the quiz/test, you won't get a grade to pass the course.
As I searched further online to see what others had to say about this, here's what I found. Earlier this year in March, some students at Florida State University asked the institution to "refrain from using" software designed to prevent students from cheating on exams, arguing the technology invades their privacy rights. More than 5,000 students signed an online petition asking the president, John Thrasher, and the university's executive vice president for academic affairs, Sally McRorie, to reconsider implementing the technology.
The software students use at FSU is Honorlock and it can verify students’ identities, record web activity and detect the use of mobile devices to ensure students aren’t cheating on tests. The service requires access to computer webcams and microphones to monitor student activity during exams. The petition claims this is a “blatant violation of our privacy as students,” and states that students without a webcam or microphone on their computer would be “forced to try to buy one amidst a pandemic” or they will not be able to comply with course requirements. The petition also claims Honorlock may collect facial data, driver’s license data, and internet network information. According to the company’s privacy policy, it does not sell or commercialize student data, but it does collect addresses, dates of birth, device information, IP addresses, and cookie data.
But the pandemic isn't forcing students alone to adopt to remote learning; most people who have jobs also have to work from home, such as myself, and I have family members who live here as well. Some students aren't able to work from a desk because their parents are using them. And even if you do a 360-view of the room you're in, how will a piece of software determine if you're cheating based upon others in the room. Even while attending in-class courses, some students don't fall victim to cheating while sitting in a classroom full of other students. Do you agree that web-cams and these kinds of software mentioned are invading our privacy? Or are they just an addition to the already spy-ware we use on a daily basis (i.e. mobile phones, laptops, smart tv's, iPads, etc.)
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