Posted on 02/18/2010 1:41:55 PM PST by AtlasStalled
A suburban Philadelphia school district used school-issued laptop webcams to spy on students at home, potentially catching them and their families in compromising situations, a family claims in a federal lawsuit. Lower Merion School District officials can activate the webcams without students' knowledge or permission, the suit said. Plaintiffs Michael and Holly Robbins suspect the cameras captured students and family members as they undressed and in other embarrassing situations, according to the suit. * * * The Robbinses said they learned of the alleged webcam images when Lindy Matsko, an assistant principal at Harriton High School, told their son that school officials thought he had engaged in improper behavior at home. The behavior was not specified in the suit. "(Matsko) cited as evidence a photograph from the webcam embedded in minor plaintiff's personal laptop issued by the school district," the suit states. Matsko later confirmed to Michael Robbins that the school had the ability to activate the webcams remotely, according to the suit, which was filed Tuesday and which seeks class-action status.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
well, well, well
So the school put hidden cameras in the bedrooms of minors? We had a State Rep named John McNeil aka John “McFeel” put one in a Nanny’s shower. He went to prison.
Admin on the school’s computer probably needs to be added to the naughty teachers list.
This is like the cameras hidden in the women’s restroom “to catch who’s vandalizing the stalls”.
It sounds like trojan software that hijacked webcam operation.
I know it may be crazy, but I put a piece of paper over my laptop webcam whenever I am not actively using it.
I also whisper quietly when conference phones are on “mute.”
Ya never know.
Prison seems like a reasonable consequence here. Unbelievable.
"Total paranoia is just total awareness." Charles Manson
Every individual who was involved with the decision to allow this, thought this was a good idea or was part of enacting or enabling a Government Education Program to spy on students, friends and family:
Should be fired, found guilty, and put in prison for several years for violating a multiple of laws, to include trespass, child pornography, privacy violations, illegal search and seizure, and Digital Privacy Act for electronic eavesdropping…shall I go on. This not only shocks the senses but on its face is a Constitutional violation at the highest levels!
Wow, .... jail time is a must for this.
Home intrusion. This is a crime. Jail time.
>>”Total paranoia is just total awareness.” Charles Manson<<
It sounds like a corollary to the Total Perspective Vortex.
I have a webcam on my company-proved laptop. I stuck a piece of black tape over it the day they issued it.
Peeping Tom .... on a grand scale!!!!
in the article they said they had the picture and admitted they took it and were in control of the camera. No trojan did this in this particular case. You should always cover your camera. I keep mine disabled in device manager unless i need it.
with that aside..
KNOWING what I know due to my (short) history with the porn industry and how stuff gets out I would likely do great violence on anyone even remotely connected to this if it was my kid.
It would be the stuff that would make a Mel Gibson/Tarrentino/Garth Ennis joint project look like an ABC afternoon special.
I have tape on mine as well.
“Ya never know.”
Wait until you find out your cell phone can be activated without ringing.
Check my post on the other thread for more details.
Additional note: My wife has a laptop issued to her from her work. Personal use of the laptop is limited and they have keyloggers installed to track her usage.
This sounds a lot like someone got caught doing something naughty in violation of previously stipulated terms that they chose to ignore. Instead of owning up, they are filing a lawsuit and screaming "victim"...
If not, if there was no warning, no paperwork... Then these school administrators in this case are morons and deserve what they get.
I prefer: “just because I’m paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not out to get me.”
Agreed; the perpetrators of this should be treated to a massacre!
Orwell’s vision does not even rise to this level, in 1984 everyone knew the game; in this model cameras were hidden in homes to secretly view people through a Government Education Program.
Im sure having the computer turned on falls under “acceptable use”
Thats all the student would need to do to enable the picture to be taken.
Now as to WHY a picture was taken... sure, im sure there was a reason the admins felt they needed to take the pic. Perhaps the kid was suspected of smoking pot and they decided they wanted to try to snap a pic of him lighting up. I dont see how that violated an AUP
I agree and had though about it a bit when I made my first comment; adults in a work place related setting, this would be acceptable when the camera is in use. Nonetheless, in this circumstance any use agreement is null and void on its face!
Can you still work in a school when
YOU’RE PUT ON THE NATIONAL PERVERT LIST
PC's also have a RDC/RDP application that allows the same level of Admin control.
Again, if they signed off on the same kind of acceptable use paperwork that we have our staff and students sign off on, then they don't have anything to complain about and no legal leg to stand on.
OTOH... If they weren't notified, in writing, then the school effed up big time.
How so?
Interesting...although, I refer you back to my first then second comment on this today…fired, guilty then prison for everyone involved; starting at the top!
What could this be, unless the kids were themselves using the camera to take questionable self portraits, not realizing that administrators could see anything they didn’t delete before rejoining the network.
bfl
Do you peek at the kids through the camera?
Let’s start with government program violating first, second, and third party privacy or government sponsored search and seizure plus digital eavesdropping…or are we playing legal student and the professor game?
Nothing that a child could sign, no agreement or whatever could legally allow anyone to secretly activate a camera in the child’s home.
Only a court order issued by a judge could make such a thing legal...nothing else whatsoever!
I had my daughter put electrical tape over hers when we first bought it. She takes it off if she wants to use it, and puts it back when she’s done.
Just a bunch of teachers trying to figure out which students they want to seduce.
“Im sure having the computer turned on falls under “acceptable use”
Thats all the student would need to do to enable the picture to be taken.”
Excerpted from a previously posted article
“It was only then that Blake Robbins’ father, Michael, verified from Assistant Principal Lindy Matsko that the school district did in fact have the capability of remotely activating the cameras embedded in the district-issued laptop computer wherever the computer may be situated and regardless of whether the student is using it, and that the school district could at any time choose “to view and capture whatever images were in front of the webcam, all without the knowledge, permission or authorization of any persons then and there using the laptop computer.”
http://americasright.com/?p=3159
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2453722/posts
I take it that the student does not have to be on the computer in order for any viewing to take place. IMHO, that’s rather scary.
Parents should hand the damn things in. Pull their kids out.
When we catch one, we try and get a snapshot of them to use as evidence. Avoids a "he said/she said" scenario.
What are you nattering on about? Try to keep up...
Here’s the AP version.
Cant do a WOL (wake on lan) to power up a turned off laptop remotely. It has to be on the same physical network to receive the magic packet.
So the notebook would have to already be turned on
I live in the area and was listening to the radio when this broke last night. The impression I got was that the school had some kind of concern about his home activities which led them to activate his webcam. What those activities were was not revealed.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.