One Webcam Case Settles

Posted on October 19, 2010 by Tom Crane

I talked about the school issued missing computers last May.  See blog post.  The Philadelphia school district then activated the webcams on the laptops in the hopes of finding them.  But, as it turns out, most were not stolen, at all.  So, the district inadvertently downloaded thousands of pictures of various families in their homes.  It was a huge invasion of privacy.  

Well, now the district has settled one case for $610,000.  See Chicago Tribune story.  The tracking program was accidentally left on months after the laptops were located.  Some 56,000 unnecessary images were taken by the district.  The student who settled his case, Blake Robbins, then 15 years old, said he never reported the laptop was stolen and did not understand why the tracking program was activated.  The webcam system took some 400 pictures of him over a two week period.  

Blake received $175,000 to be placed in a trust for him.  The lawyer received $425,000.  The article does not explain, but I assume that was the lawyer's attorney's fees.  Most civil rights statutes contain an attorney's fees provision. 

The district no longer uses the web tracking program.  With this case, we start getting some idea of the limits on computer technology and privacy concerns. 

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School Issued Laptops Took Pictures with No Warning

Posted on May 5, 2010 by Tom Crane

You may have heard about the school district in California that let some 2,000 students take home school-issued laptops,  The laptops had webcams and a software program, Theft Tracker.  Theft Tracker would take pictures with the web cam every 15 minutes, if the shool officials activated the program.  Many laptops were reported stolen.  So, the webcams were activated in many laptops. The program enabled the law enforcement authroities to recover six laptops.  But, some laptops were reported stolen but later found by the student.  Yet, the Theft Tracker was never deactivated.  The laptops overall took some 56,000 pictures.  About two-thirds of the pictures were related to the six actually stolen laptops.  The rest of the pictures were taken from laptops that had not been stolen. School officials simply neglected to deactivate the theft tracker software.  So, there were many pictures.

The parents were not told about the software.  They have even pretty upset, reports Workplace Privacy Counsel.  The school committed several errors, reports Workplace Privacy:

  • The school failed to issue written policies regarding the use of Theft Tracker
  • Parents and students were not informed and were not required to consent to its use

As Workplace Privacy Counsel explains, the same issues would apply to the workplace.  Any employer seeking to use similar technology would need to issue written policies regarding the technology and obtain consent from its employees.  

Otherwise, any employer would face what the California school district is facing: at least one lawsuit, so far regarding invasion of privacy; an FBI investigation; Congressional hearings; and one proposal by Sen. Specter to extend the Federal Wiretap Act to video surveillance.  

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