School used webcam to spy on student
 

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/...n6226260.shtml


I can't really believe someone thought it was a great idea to allow a school administration the ability to turn on a student's webcam. Even from a security stand point, wouldn't a GPS tracker or something be more efficient? Shouldn't parents be informed that a camera is going into their house? If they take a picture while someone is changing, can they get charged for having child porn? Seriously, WHO would think this was a good idea?

"But Deadman is a fucking moron there is no plan for a Government sponsored surveillance grid..."

Mainstream Media coverage no less.

If you guys don't get a clue now you never will.

The Federal government is investigating.

But the laptop spy cams got funding from where?

The Public school system...which in turn is ran by whom?

The Federal Government.

I had a high school teacher who was a racist, doesn't mean the government is racist. Schools generally have their own individual say in where funding goes anyway.

So no, this does not amount to a crazy conspiracy where Obama is watching you and your blow up doll fuck at night.

I can't even be bothered arguing this. You're a dumbass.

God damn Deadman. Can't we have ONE thread that you don't spam with your infowars inspired faggotry?

No. This is my point. If Deadman posts, you can be certain it is exactly that kind of infowars inspired faggotry.

Back to the thread at hand. Extremely bad judgment on the part of school administration. Since these are the same people who try to expel children from school for having a plastic butter knife in their backpack (yeah, I post Zero Tolerance Rules inspired faggotry) ... I hope they're dealt with strongly when the responsibility is proven and judgment is rendered.

The school could of simply put a program on the computer that force users to check into a web server with a specific password that changes every so often, and if they dont check in with the server the computer is locked out. Thats what they did with the 1 computer 1 child program, and it's worked pretty well so far from what I've heard,

I'm trying to think of reasons someone would do this and each reason is stupid.

As stupid as remotely activating a webcam to see where it is?

No, but the aim of quantifying stupidity is not to legitimise all other ridiculous things that aren't the absolute apex of brainlessness, so the server thing is still a terrible idea.

I'm not saying it's the most amazing idea ever, I'm saying it's the lesser of two evils. Also I described it wrong, here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bitfrost

Also it should be noted that the program was designed by a harvard graduate (who also co-wrote the book on Ubuntu) for use in a laptop desgined by MIT.

Seems that restricting students with school issued laptops with webcams is a means to infiltrate personal affairs in the name of discipline. Is the federal government, who run over the public school system doing this kind of stupid act? Perhaps they are disobeying the basic laws, especially in respecting one's home.

They never mentioned the system they have in place that gives the students the laptops, but I'm guessing its some sort of loan system for kids, possibly kids whose families cant affort a computer at home. They arnt forcing all of their kids to take home laptops, no school district could possibly afford such a thing. Well unless the 1 computer 1 child program manages to meet their goal of developing a $100 laptop.

The laptops they provided were MacBooks so that school must have one hell of a sponsor somewhere that can afford to let the school lend out such expensive computers.

Let's get one thing straight--the school is stupid, but not malicious. The title of this thread is inaccurate. They weren't spying on anyone. The kid stole the laptop, and their policy is to remotely access the webcam and take a photo. Yes, this is illegal, and it's stupid, but they weren't looking to take away anyone's privacy or get their hands on child porn.

Well, they were. Their stated objective was not to take away their students' privacy but a policy of watching the students without their knowing in their own homes is certainly a deliberate invasion of privacy.

The policy is not to watch students without their knowing. They don't watch, they take a single photo to identify who stole the laptop. Still illegal, but not the same as watching.

The students ARE made aware that if a laptop is stolen, this is what happens. He stole a laptop--it happened.

So yes, it's still stupid, and it's still illegal, but it's not what people are making it out to be.

He didn't steal the laptop. The laptops are given out by the school district.

Several people from the school that also borrowed the computers have posted on various forums (Arstechnica's and Slashdot's are two examples) that they noticed the webcam turning on and off several times when they were using them at home, quite confirming that the school was monitoring them even if the computers wasn't stolen. Some, more techsavvy people, got around this by placing sillyputty and strips of tape over the camera and microphone.

You can turn this either way you wan't, what the school did is still wrong, illegal and a huge breach of privacy.

Yes, he did. The news isn't reporting that because it makes the story less fun, but the school district is one over from where I went.

Even if he stole it, the accusation was that he was taking drugs; that he stole it is irrelevant to the fact that they only 'knew' this by observing him without his consent, apparently for other reasons than finding the laptop, and even if the webcam was powered to locate it (which is really stupid, everyone here agrees on that at least) at that precise moment they thought he was taking drugs, making any further accusation than that he stole it was not warranted in the same manner that court evidence acquired through illegal means ought not be considered in court.

Here's some interesting reading regarding the tech and people behind it, as well as some fucked up school policies.

http://strydehax.blogspot.com/2010/0...gton-high.html