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Mass. Bill Would Put Privacy Squeeze on Cloud Apps For Schools
An anonymous reader points out a story at The Register about a Microsoft-backed bill proposed by Massachusetts state representative Carlo Basil which seems aimed directly at Google's cloud apps. The bill, if it should be enacted, would require that "[a]ny person who provides a cloud computing service to an educational institution operating within the State shall process data of a student enrolled in kindergarten through twelfth grade for the sole purpose of providing the cloud computing service to the educational institution and shall not process such data for any commercial purpose, including but not limited to advertising purposes that benefit the cloud computing service provider."
Microsoft used to not spend any money on political campaigns. Then, after a while, they figured out enough to post political contributions on both sides and then to hire a lobbyist to advocate for them.
Microsoft's budget for political lobbying exceeded that of EnronAnother older example
Microsoft's new push in Washington - CNET News http://news.cnet.com/2010-1071_3-1021938.htmlJun 30, 2003 Â CNET News.com's Declan McCullagh explains why the software maker has quietly given marching orders to its phalanx of lobbyists to get the government to ...
Of course, Google couldn't be left behind
Jan 26, 2010 -- Google quickly gaining on Microsoft in lobbying spending. Search giant is quickly catching up to Redmond as a tech power to be reckoned with in WashingtonIt's not as if this is anything new. Industry boards have long written laws: not just outlines, not just drafts, but the entire full set and exact wording just as they want it to be. That you can search for yourself. There are thousands of examples of that.
Google will simply stop offering free GApps for Education for Massachusetts Schools and Non-Profits. The reason the service is free is google is counting on that data.
Disclaimer: I am the admin for a small HS and am quite happy with our Google Apps right now
"goodbye and hello, as always" ~Prince Corwin, from Zelazny's Amber series
Google will simply stop offering free GApps for Education for Massachusetts Schools and Non-Profits. The reason the service is free is google is counting on that data. Disclaimer: I am the admin for a small HS and am quite happy with our Google Apps right now
I suppose I should have said "stated intent". The intent is exactly that as far as MS is concerned
"goodbye and hello, as always" ~Prince Corwin, from Zelazny's Amber series
1) that ALL data format should be easily 100% convertible to open formats.
2) that all companies shall be prevented from selling/giving OSs or educational software at lower than their normal price so as to lock-in students.
3)
Meanwhile we in Europe laugh, because that's what our corporations by law are allowed only. Process data for the sole purpose it was collected for. No analysis whatsoever afterwards.
Coincidentally, just yesterday I got a pointer to this blog entry by a guy at the Berkeley Center for Law and Technology, noting that while cloud apps are great and useful and all that, cloud app providers are poorly prepared to deal with the academic sector's privacy concerns and needs (some of which may be demanded of the academic sector by law).
I believe Berkeley is in the midst of switching to Google Apps.
Village idiot in some extremely smart villages.
There are *many* things wrong with selling student data, but since you're American, let's just say that schools don't own their students' data, the students do. Selling somebody else's property: bad.
Someone lobbied to pass a law to make lobbying legal? ;>)
California lawmakers showered with gifts after shelving limits.
Srsly, if you look up the laws limiting when former legislators are forbidden to work for private entities immediately after leaving office, you'll see a surge of these laws occurring right after some big ethics scandal when someone gets caught doing corporate bidding and then immediately bailing out of their legislative job into a high paying corporate job in an industry they recently regulated.
.
Then, as the years pass and people forget about the reason and need for these regulations, the currently new batch of state or federal level legislators votes the old restrictions out and give themselves the ability to receive "gifts" from constituents. This is playing out right now in california, and happens over and over again everywhere in this country. Here's an article in the L.A. Times about this on March 3rd, 2013:
California legislators disclose gifts received in 2012 - SACRAMENTO â" California lawmakers accepted a trip to Brazil, fine cigars and crystal ducks, among many other gifts from corporations, trade groups and other special
I am completely serious about how easy it is to find these types of shenanigans being reported on. It happens in every county and every state in these United States of Shamerica. And probably also in every country in this world.
the age of 13 (including 13), why should Google with the Cloud App stuff?
I mean all the way until 12th grade is a bit crazy as the kids are 17-18 years old typically by that point. They should find a grade where kids aren't (maybe without the very rare exception) 13 or under anymore, and make that the cut off.
If websites can't collect data on kids 13 and under it shouldn't be any different for Microsoft, Google, whoever's cloud service within the school. Older than that, well.. if Facebook can then they should be able to as well. Want it changed in the schools? Change it for the websites as well.
Just my thoughts
Unless there's some sneaky bit of small print in the bill that amounts to "unless your name is Microsoft" then I agree.
Personally I have no problems with using cloud services but I respect those who would prefer not to be 'watched' and corporations certainly shouldn't be pushing ads to kids (...and going by other posts here, Google don't).
Even without ads, it is in the interest of cloud providers to offer education a good deal on their services - all those young hearts and minds.
In a survey of 100 programmers, 111111 thought that duck-typing was a good idea.
I concur with the position that our laws should not be authored by corporations and should not be passed using the influence of campaign financing.
That being said, I support the bill. As a teacher, if I were to ask my students to take a survey in class, then aggregate the data and sell the results to a corporation eager to know how to market to that age group, I would be fired. Then why should a school condone corporations like Google or Facebook to permit the same activity? As a parent, I would be very upset to know that schools are allowing corporations to harvest marketing data while at school. And as a taxpayer, I want as little corporate involvement in our public school as possible.
I just wish Microsoft wasn't involved. Especially given all the illegal acts Microsoft has committed over the last two decades, it's almost the pot calling the kettle black.
Unless there's some sneaky bit of small print in the bill that amounts to "unless your name is Microsoft"
More likely it's Microsoft wanting to sell some service to the state's school districts that Google would have offered without charge.
No service provider should be collecting data about any school kid. If they go home and sign into Facebook, that's their decision. At school, it's not.
Microsoft may have written this law, but, as described, it sounds like a good one.
First off all, it would strike at MS' Office 360 as well. Google could simply not collect data when the service is used at school. The law appears only to apply to use under the educational institutions guise; not elsewhere. Use at home? You'r fair game, and not using any data from use at school is simply a cost of capturing your eyeballs and getting used to Google's services. Nor does the law prevent Google from providing data to the schools for their use.
I'm a consultant - I convert gibberish into cash-flow.
You know, all those students are a great labour pool. The schools could just sign them up for one of those "make $2500 a month from home!" jobs stuffing envelopes or whatever. That would relieve their funding pressure!
Because students are underage and can't protest the selling of their data. Selling the data of people who are not able to consent is illegal.
When corporations write and enforce your laws?
The school is owned by the parents and taxpayers. The schools own NOTHING.
"Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it." - Charlie Br
I think I read this maxim on /. first: "If you aren't paying for the product, you ARE the product" (this is from memory, pardon me if I misquoted it).
If it were up to me, there would be no commercial student-targeted advertising in parts of school buildings where students are required to be or at any school-managed facility where students are required to be present or within plain view of any part of any school-managed facility where students are required to be present. Advertising in teachers' lounges and other areas where students rarely have to be would be okay.
I would grant exceptions for elective courses like football or band so sports stadiums could be ad-funded, provided that those students taking non-elective courses couldn't see the ads from their classrooms and that any students taking mandatory PE classes weren't required to "run around the track" without the ads being covered first.
Extending this to the digital world:
It's impractical to tell the Internet "sorry, if you have ads we can't let you in the door" but aggressive ad-blocking should be used and paying content providers directly in exchange for providing content which is non-ad-based, no-student-data-collected or student-data-used-only-to-benefit-the-student-or-school and possibly even somewhat pre-packaged (e.g. an age-, school-, or topic-specific user interface) or pre-filtered (e.g. "safesearch on" for search engines) would be a good thing.
Knowledge is how to play a game, intelligence is how to win, wisdom is knowing what game to play.
LOL, WTF. You have no idea what Microsoft is up to here.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/03/us-education-database-idUSBRE92204W20130303
Linked from
http://yro.slashdot.org/story/13/03/04/135248/100-million-student-database-worries-parents
"The database is a joint project of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which provided most of the funding, the Carnegie Corporation of New York and school officials from several states. Amplify Education, a division of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, built the infrastructure over the past 18 months. When it was ready, the Gates Foundation turned the database over to a newly created nonprofit, inBloom Inc, which will run it."
Bill Gates funds massive school child database
http://dailycaller.com/2013/03/04/new-gates-funded-database-keeps-addresses-and-social-security-numbers-of-millions-of-children-so-dont-worry/
From PJ at Groklaw:
"In operation just three months, the database already holds files on millions of children identified by name, address and sometimes social security number. Learning disabilities are documented, test scores recorded, attendance noted. In some cases, the database tracks student hobbies, career goals, attitudes toward school â" even homework completion".... link
AccountKiller
And instead of copying the manifestly good idea of making money by giving away software services that allow you to collect valuable data, they try to make that business model illegal.
www.malegislature.gov/Bills/188/House/H331
We always thought they were malicious.
Yep, it was on the front page not too long ago.
http://yro.slashdot.org/story/13/03/04/135248/100-million-student-database-worries-parents
No mention on slashdot about the student database that Bill Gates is funding. This is becoming normal behavior for slashdot.
It's sad, I can remember when slashdot was a refreshing oasis from all MS propaganda on other sites.
Ah well, at there is Groklaw.
Bill Gates is pretending to care about the privacy of children just to continue his Tonya Harding tactics against Google.
If BG gave a damn about the privacy of students, he would not be funding this database.
google should just give the stuff away anyway and just not collect the data... even if merely to close the window of opportunity for microsoft
the problem for google is that if microsoft gets its grubby hands on the opportunity, they will lock the education system into the microsoft ecosystem and they will have the contract for eternity
laws can always be amended, and money can be made by other means... i'm sure there are some smart cookies at google that could come up with a revenue stream in such a system that doesn't violate such law (if enacted)