Tech This Out!

Privacy for sale? How EdTech companies profit from students’ data

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When students sit an exam remotely or even buy a candy bar at a vending machine during a break, their information is collected, tracked and often used in ways they never agreed to. In this episode, 5Rights Youth Ambassador Maximilian sits down with Patricia Kosseim, Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario (Canada), to uncover what really happens to student data behind the scenes. Together, they explore how EdTech companies profit from children’s information, the deceptive design practices that make it hard to say no and how regulators and schools can take the next step to protect student privacy.  

 

This podcast is brought to you by the 5Rights Foundation, the pioneering global organisation working with and for children for better tech. Visit our website to learn more about our work. 

 

Ready to learn more about student privacy? Find below the resources and tools mentioned in the episode: 

  • In the forthcoming 2025 Global Privacy Enforcement Network sweep, more than 30 data protection agencies from around the world examined websites and apps commonly used by young people. The IPC focused specifically on EdTech products and their privacy settings. 
    • In the joint resolution on EdTech, Canada’s privacy regulators call for strong protection of children’s privacy in the development and use of educational technologies. 
      • Identifying and mitigating harms from privacy-related deceptive design patterns is a joint resolution issued by privacy regulators from across Canada calling for action on the growing use of deceptive design patterns. 
        • The PowerSchool Investigation Report includes the findings of the investigations into the privacy breach involving PowerSchool, a tool used by schools in Ontario and Alberta. 
          • The Youth Ambassador Toolkit offers children and young people knowledge and resources about the importance of privacy and privacy rights.  
            • The Privacy Pursuit! Lesson Plans are for educators teaching students about the importance of privacy and how to protect it online.  

              • For even more guidance for children, students, educators and parents, including the Info Matters podcast, please visit the IPC website.  

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              Tech This Out!By 5Rights