Students around the world who were required to use government-endorsed education technology (ed tech) throughout the pandemic had their contact, keystroke and location data plundered and sold to advertising tech companies, according to the Human Rights Watch (HRW).
A staggering 146 out of 164 government-endorsed ed tech products jeopardised children’s privacy, with 199 third-party companies receiving personal data, the HRW reported.
Out of these, only 35 endorsed vendors disclosed that user data would be collected to targeted advertising, with 23 products developed intended for children to be the primary users.
“In the absence of alternatives, children faced a singular choice whether they were aware of it or not: Attend school and use an ed tech product that infringes upon their privacy, or forgo the product altogether, be marked as absent, and be forced to drop out of school during the pandemic,” the HRW wrote in its report How dare they peep into my private life.
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