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Even if it was personal email/social media I've see school computers continually log to disk a low-framerate screen capture of the student's screen. They could
by digitallyfree 4y ago
Even if it was personal email/social media I've see school computers continually log to disk a low-framerate screen capture of the student's screen. They could also watch it in realtime. My school also had keyloggers installed and while admin insisted that they would not use any captured usernames and passwords they certainly had the capacity to do so.
I think there was some news in the past where some schools took this even further with webcam and mic access, though I didn't experience this.
On a school or work computer that you don't control assume someone is watching behind your shoulder at all times, and reading every word you type. Whether if that's the case or not.
- twiss 4y agoYeah, that's also terrible. But this was an email account that we could access from our personal computers (they didn't give us a laptop) so at the time I didn't realize that they would be able to read it. IMO, it would have been good if Google had shown some warning or so, that that's the case.
- inopinatus 4y agoI have worked for a MSP supplying internet services and groupware to institutions, and can tell you that the business and technical requirements for schools are almost indistinguishable from those of prisons.
- elliekelly 4y agoRobbins v. Lower Merion School District: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robbins_v._Lower_Merion_School_District https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robbins_v._Lower_Merion_Scho...
- digitallyfree 4y agoYep, that's the case I was talking about. I know some students refused to fool around or gossip in front of school computers after that incident in fear that the microphones and cameras might be recording.
- BarryMilo 4y agoTalk about 1984
- sandworm101 4y ago>> On a school or work computer that you don't control assume someone is watching behind your shoulder... And also every computer running software you don't own/control. If you really care about privacy you really need to be running Linux on personal machines.
- megous 4y agoWhile at university (~2003) I realized that computers in the lab could boot from CD-ROM so I made my own live CD based on a customzied Slackware with a custom OS loader written in C that could boot to GNOME in <1 minute (all preconfigured with apps I used for school), and used that for a few years in the labs. :) That was a nice middle ground. I could sensibly use my favorite environment even during short 10 minute visits between lectures.
- ivan_gammel 4y agoIn 1990s at our school it was children who installed keyloggers to get admin passwords. I guess now they have grown up and became school admins.
- iasay 4y agoNo one who could do that ended up a school admin.
- ivan_gammel 4y agoThat wasn’t exactly a rocket science back then. I know at least one person who became a CS professor at university.
- checkyoursudo 4y agoScript-kiddies can grow up to do all sorts of jobs! :)