Vertiefungswissen anzeigen
Vertiefungswissen verbergen
Privacy at school
Privacy and Data Protection at school
Children face increasing pressure regarding their privacy at very young ages. A large part of their social life is conducted over smartphones and their apps. Children are not the only ones who find it difficult to assess what the provisions in many apps' T&C really mean – the provisions for which consent is required before use. It's even more difficult to recognise the dangers that arise through the careless handling of personal data online – both one's own and that of others. Uncertainty can lead to resignation, and there is the risk that people give up on the idea of privacy altogether.
Why should anyone question the motives behind these convenient tools and gadgets, which are mostly offered for free by global conglomerates? After all, "everyone" is using them! Why is privacy protection so important that I should willingly loose out on all these opportunities? If I have nothing to hide, why should I be bothered when everyone knows everything about me? You might even think that personalised advertisements are less intrusive than random ones.
There's much more to it, however. If we no longer control what others know about us, or if there is no longer any transparency as to why we receive certain information (whilst others do not), we become an easy prey to manipulation.
|
|
Without privacy there is no democracy
The right to privacy is a fundamental right. Its protection is therefore enshrined in the Swiss Federal Constitution as well as in the European Convention on Human Rights. Nevertheless, the demise of privacy is evoked time and again. Scott McNealy, former CEO of Sun Microsystems, is attributed with the declaration "Privacy is dead. Get over it." Ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt said: "If you have something that you don't want anyone to know, maybe you shouldn't be doing it in the first place."
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, agrees that people today no longer have any qualms about sharing private information. He himself, however, has put tape over his own laptop's camera and microphone. Mark Zuckerberg seems to care about his own privacy.
The right to privacy was first called for in an article authored by the American lawyers Warren and Brandeis in 1890, described therein as the "right to be let alone".
The events of the Second World War made clear that information landing in the wrong hands can have devastating consequences. Data protection legislation underwent further evolution with the advent of the computer in the 1960s.
The protection of privacy gives people room to move and develop freely. Only those who enjoy privacy can develop their own opinions and express critical views on societal issues. This is a fundamental prerequisite for a functioning democracy.
Privacy and data protection in Switzerland
In Switzerland, the „Fichenaffäre“ (a secret files scandal) in the 1980s led to increased skepticism regarding state surveillance. In this scandal it was revealed that the Swiss authorities had secretly collected information about the political activities of 700 000 persons and organizations. This subsequently led to the enactment of the Swiss Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP) in 1993 and the Information and Data Protection Act (IDG) in the canton of Zurich in 1994.
Each canton has its own data protection laws. The FADP regulates the data processing activities of federal bodies, as well as the conditions for private bodies and companies. Schools and other public institutions in the canton of Zurich are subject to the provisions of the IDG and come under the jurisdiction of the Data Protection Authority of the canton of Zurich. The Data Protection Authority supervises the data processing of public bodies and advises them on data privacy matters.
Data protection at school
Digitization has caused an explosion in the sheer amount of data out there, as well as in opportunities to analyze and further utilize it. Technology applications like cloud computing, e-learning platforms, class chats and social media bring both benefits as well as new and greater risks for the invasion of privacy. Today, considerably more information about pupils is stored and passed on than ever before. This can unintentionally influence teachers in a negative manner. The disclosure of extensive educational data, for example, can worsen the chances of a child from an educationally disadvantaged environment compared to a child from a family of academics.
Data protection lexicon
A variety of issues relating to data protection law arise at school. The Data Protection Authority has collected answers to questions – from school principals, teachers and other specialists, and parents – into a public data privacy lexicon. This lexicon is regularly updated and is available at
www.datenschutz.ch
.
The primary school data protection lexicon provides answers to such questions as:
- Is the school permitted to publish my child's school photograph online?
- As a parent, may I photograph children appearing in theatre performances?
- May a teacher take a photo of their class as a memento?
- As a teacher, may I discuss the health problems of my pupils in the faculty room?
- Are teachers permitted to communicate with their pupils over WhatsApp?
- What do I need to know if I want to use a cloud-based service for collaborative work?