School Laptop Web Camera Used to Spy on Student at Home

Here is a local news item involving a school laptop web camera that is becoming a nation wide story. In the Lower Merion School District of Pennsylvania, about 4 hours West of Pittsburgh, a student was punished by his school for “inappropriate behavior”… IN HIS HOME. How did school officials know what he was doing at home? They saw and recorded him using the web camera on a school issued laptop.

They had accused him of doing drugs and possibly selling them at school and had some video footage to prove their allegations. First of all the kid was eating candy and was not doing drugs. Second, isn’t spying totally against the law? Did they not know this common fact? Not only did the school officials spy on the kid, they then reported their findings and showed the recorded footage to his parents and I guess to the local police. OOOPS.

The school claims that laptops with built in cameras are used in order to protect against theft and that they have not broken any laws. I suppose their plan was if a laptop was stolen they would switch on the web camera and try to figure out where the computer was or who had it. This laptop wasn’t stolen though and a clear case of privacy invasion seems to be evolving. The school somehow still claims this is not the case even though the FBI is now involved and an investigation is under way to decide if there have been any federal wiretap and computer-intrusion violations and/or violations of Pennsylvania criminal laws.

There is probably more to this story and I doubt anyone meant for it to be public however it does bring about a few issues that students and school officials may want to be made aware of when using school issued computers or issuing a laptop with built in camera to a student to take home. In regards to the web camera, who has access? Are they trust worthy? In regards to the students who take these laptops home, if you are doing something you wouldn’t do in the front yard in broad day light… close the lid.