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2010/02/19 01:35:24
Subject: Attention High School students: Big Brother is watching you.
Computerworld.com wrote:
Computerworld - A suburban Philadelphia school district remotely activates the cameras in school-provided laptops to spy on students in their homes, a lawsuit filed in federal court Tuesday alleged.
According to the lawsuit filed by a high school student and his parents, the Lower Merion School District of Ardmore, Pa. has spied on students and families by "indiscriminate use of and ability to remotely activate the Webcams incorporated into each laptop issued to students by the School District."
Approximately 1,800 students at the district's two high schools have been given laptops as part of a state- and federally-funded "one-to-one" student-to-laptop initiative.
Michael and Holly Robbins of Penn Valley, Pa., said they first found out about the alleged spying last November after their son Blake was accused by a Harriton High School official of "improper behavior in his home" and shown a photograph taken by his laptop.
An assistant principal at Harriton later confirmed that the district could remotely activate the Webcam in students' laptops. "Michael Robbins thereafter verified, through [Assistant Principal] Ms. Matsko, that the school district in fact has the ability to remotely activate the Webcam contained in a student's personal laptop computer issued by the school district at any time it chose and to view and capture whatever images were in front of the Webcam, all without the knowledge, permission or authorization of any persons then and there using the laptop computer," the lawsuit stated.
The Robbins claimed that the district did not tell them beforehand that their son's laptop Webcam could be activated remotely, and added that there was no mention of the functionality in any of the documentation they received or on the district's Web site.
And the privacy of non-students has been violated, the Robbins said. "By virtue of the fact that the Webcam can be remotely activated at any time by the School District, the Webcam will capture anything happening in the room in which the laptop computer is located, regardless of whether the student is sitting at the computer and using it," the lawsuit charged.
The suit accuses the school district of violating the federal Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA), and other federal and state statues, including the Pennsylvania Wiretapping and Electronic Surveillance Act.
Mark Haltzman of the law firm Lamm Rubenstone, and the Robbins' attorney, did not return a call for comment. A spokesman for the Lower Merion School District said early Thursday that the district had only found out about the suit hours before, and so was not able to immediately comment on the case.
If the lawsuit is granted class-action status, other students in the district and their families would be able to join the action.
The Robbins family has asked for unspecified compensatory and punitive damages, and demanded that the court issue an injunction barring the district from activating students' laptop cameras.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2010/02/19 01:54:12
Mannahnin wrote:A lot of folks online (and in emails in other parts of life) use pretty mangled English. The idea is that it takes extra effort and time to write properly, and they’d rather save the time. If you can still be understood, what’s the harm? While most of the time a sloppy post CAN be understood, the use of proper grammar, punctuation, and spelling is generally seen as respectable and desirable on most forums. It demonstrates an effort made to be understood, and to make your post an easy and pleasant read. By making this effort, you can often elicit more positive responses from the community, and instantly mark yourself as someone worth talking to.
insaniak wrote: Every time someone threatens violence over the internet as a result of someone's hypothetical actions at the gaming table, the earth shakes infinitisemally in its orbit as millions of eyeballs behind millions of monitors all roll simultaneously.
2010/02/19 01:42:07
Subject: Attention high School students: Big Brother is watching you.
--The whole concept of government granted and government regulated 'permits' and the accompanying government mandate for government approved firearms 'training' prior to being blessed by government with the privilege to carry arms in a government approved and regulated manner, flies directly in the face of the fundamental right to keep and bear arms.
“The Constitution is not an instrument for the government to restrain the people, it is an instrument for the people to restrain the government.”
2010/02/19 01:56:11
Subject: Attention High School students: Big Brother is watching you.
Great. Now I have another reason to put a piece of electrical tape over my laptop's webcam. Not only might the computer become sentient and fall in unreciprocated love with me, but I've got this to worry about too.
Anuvver fing - when they do sumfing, they try to make it look like somfink else to confuse everybody. When one of them wants to lord it over the uvvers, 'e says "I'm very speshul so'z you gotta worship me", or "I know summink wot you lot don't know, so yer better lissen good". Da funny fing is, arf of 'em believe it and da over arf don't, so 'e 'as to hit 'em all anyway or run fer it.
2010/02/19 02:00:29
Subject: Re:Attention High School students: Big Brother is watching you.
What I find funny is how the school official willingly revealed that the laptop was taking pictures completely oblivious of the gak storm it would stir up.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2010/02/19 02:07:40
2010/02/19 02:08:23
Subject: Attention High School students: Big Brother is watching you.
Anuvver fing - when they do sumfing, they try to make it look like somfink else to confuse everybody. When one of them wants to lord it over the uvvers, 'e says "I'm very speshul so'z you gotta worship me", or "I know summink wot you lot don't know, so yer better lissen good". Da funny fing is, arf of 'em believe it and da over arf don't, so 'e 'as to hit 'em all anyway or run fer it.
2010/02/19 02:10:28
Subject: Attention High School students: Big Brother is watching you.
So wait, did they like catch the kid beating his meat or something?
If so...it kinda makes sense that the school would say something about it. They loan out the laptops so that students(who otherwise might not have access to a computer at home to do specific assignments) can do work.
Not watch porn or play games.
2010/02/19 02:34:33
Subject: Attention High School students: Big Brother is watching you.
Anuvver fing - when they do sumfing, they try to make it look like somfink else to confuse everybody. When one of them wants to lord it over the uvvers, 'e says "I'm very speshul so'z you gotta worship me", or "I know summink wot you lot don't know, so yer better lissen good". Da funny fing is, arf of 'em believe it and da over arf don't, so 'e 'as to hit 'em all anyway or run fer it.
2010/02/19 02:58:28
Subject: Attention High School students: Big Brother is watching you.
It's the the middle school loaning out the laptops.
And you'll also notice in the link he provided, that they shut down the feature after this incident happened--even if the original reason for it(to track down lost/stolen laptops) was a really good one.
2010/02/19 03:03:55
Subject: Attention High School students: Big Brother is watching you.
Holy fething gak. There had better be a lot of people going to jail for this.
Not only is this completely in violation of the right to privacy, not even telling the end-user about the capabillity is just grade A douchebaggery.
Further more, if the school did observe a student beating his meat or whatever, that's child porn right there, which makes them child rapists, which are right up there on top of the list of people that need to get karate-chopped in the 'nads.
I would laugh so hard if they got child porn charges.
Anuvver fing - when they do sumfing, they try to make it look like somfink else to confuse everybody. When one of them wants to lord it over the uvvers, 'e says "I'm very speshul so'z you gotta worship me", or "I know summink wot you lot don't know, so yer better lissen good". Da funny fing is, arf of 'em believe it and da over arf don't, so 'e 'as to hit 'em all anyway or run fer it.
2010/02/19 03:07:57
Subject: Re:Attention High School students: Big Brother is watching you.
Anuvver fing - when they do sumfing, they try to make it look like somfink else to confuse everybody. When one of them wants to lord it over the uvvers, 'e says "I'm very speshul so'z you gotta worship me", or "I know summink wot you lot don't know, so yer better lissen good". Da funny fing is, arf of 'em believe it and da over arf don't, so 'e 'as to hit 'em all anyway or run fer it.
2010/02/19 03:28:22
Subject: Attention High School students: Big Brother is watching you.
Anuvver fing - when they do sumfing, they try to make it look like somfink else to confuse everybody. When one of them wants to lord it over the uvvers, 'e says "I'm very speshul so'z you gotta worship me", or "I know summink wot you lot don't know, so yer better lissen good". Da funny fing is, arf of 'em believe it and da over arf don't, so 'e 'as to hit 'em all anyway or run fer it.
2010/02/19 03:30:09
Subject: Attention High School students: Big Brother is watching you.
Yeah...the most they could get it for would be invasion of privacy.
The court has to prove sexual gratification and or intent to distribute.
--The whole concept of government granted and government regulated 'permits' and the accompanying government mandate for government approved firearms 'training' prior to being blessed by government with the privilege to carry arms in a government approved and regulated manner, flies directly in the face of the fundamental right to keep and bear arms.
“The Constitution is not an instrument for the government to restrain the people, it is an instrument for the people to restrain the government.”
2010/02/19 03:30:21
Subject: Attention High School students: Big Brother is watching you.
Orkeosaurus wrote:Great. Now I have another reason to put a piece of electrical tape over my laptop's webcam. Not only might the computer become sentient and fall in unreciprocated love with me, but I've got this to worry about too.
Dont forget to put blue tape on the usb port incase the ghosts might come out.
But seriously mon. Why in the world world they care what students do on there comopurters. they should know if they give a teenage boy a laptop 50ut of 100 there will be porn on it.
-to many points to bother to count.
mattyrm wrote:i like the idea of a woman with a lobster claw for a hand touching my nuts. :-)
2010/02/19 03:44:16
Subject: Attention High School students: Big Brother is watching you.
Orkeosaurus wrote:Great. Now I have another reason to put a piece of electrical tape over my laptop's webcam. Not only might the computer become sentient and fall in unreciprocated love with me, but I've got this to worry about too.
Dont forget to put blue tape on the usb port incase the ghosts might come out.
But seriously mon. Why in the world world they care what students do on there comopurters. they should know if they give a teenage boy a laptop 50ut of 100 there will be porn on it.
Because the explicit use of the laptops is for educational purposes only.
Masturbating to brunette on brunette action isn't educational.
2010/02/19 03:49:38
Subject: Attention High School students: Big Brother is watching you.
Anyways--
Yeah. If the school gets child pornography charges pressed against them--expect this whole "One to One" program that they've been trying to do nationwide to collapse.
2010/02/19 03:54:38
Subject: Attention High School students: Big Brother is watching you.