Wired reports on the opening to third parties of England's national-pupil-database:
Data relating to every school pupil in England is now available for use by private companies thanks to a change in legislation implemented last year. The move is part of a wider government initiative to "marketise" data, which includes initiatives such as the much-criticised Care.data and the selling off of taxpayer data by HMRC.
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English School Data Available to Private Firms
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(Score: 2) by ikanreed on Tuesday April 29 2014, @01:35PM
There's no stopping the fact that information wants to be free. The only mistake people make is thinking that assertion is one in favor of online anarchists, and not the powers that be who can use that information more easily.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Tuesday April 29 2014, @01:48PM
You give them too much credit, me thinks: 'cause all I'm seeing now is a sale of this data.
I mean, after "using" all this data for years, can you point to some result of this "use"?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 29 2014, @01:46PM
As long as her data is included... for good measure, throw in the big wigs du jour.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by AnonTechie on Tuesday April 29 2014, @01:46PM
I think governments the world over need to ensure the privacy of individual data. Time and again it has been proven that personal data has been mis-used by greedy, seedy and unscrupulous advertisers. When will (if at all) the authorities learn that !! In the UK, there have been so many reported breaches of NHS records, in the past, which, did not end well for the patients.
Albert Einstein - "Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."
(Score: 2) by Sir Garlon on Tuesday April 29 2014, @01:57PM
Governments will ensure privacy when and only when voters demand it and hold the elected officials accountable for results.
[Sir Garlon] is the marvellest knight that is now living, for he destroyeth many good knights, for he goeth invisible.
(Score: 2) by VLM on Tuesday April 29 2014, @02:16PM
A prerequisite would be the party leaders permitting the discussion to happen.
If its not permitted to be a campaign issue, it won't be a campaign issue, and there will be no voter input.
This is actually fairly cheap to purchase.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Angry Jesus on Tuesday April 29 2014, @02:06PM
> In the UK, there have been so many reported breaches of NHS records,
> in the past, which, did not end well for the patients.
I think the problem is the opposite -- that there have been so many data breaches but the harm done as a result is not obvious. In most cases there is no harm, and when there is harm it isn't clearly and obviously connected to the breach. Most people have difficulty "connecting the dots" unless the connection is a single straight line. So unless the harm happens immediately after and directly as a result of the breach, society doesn't pay much attention. Schneier calls this phenomenon the availability heuristic. [schneier.com]
(Score: 2) by VLM on Tuesday April 29 2014, @03:48PM
A concrete example of this would be .com has a ridiculous idea that SS numbers, moms maiden name, my first car, grandfather's nickname, the city name my high school / grade school was located in, street name I lived on as a kid, all that stuff is private and supposedly only I know it.
It is, of course, at this point public knowledge to anyone who cares to look.
(Score: 1) by Buck Feta on Tuesday April 29 2014, @04:03PM
Your rockstar name is your mother's maiden name + the first street you lived on + your social security number.
Share on Facebook?
- fractious political commentary goes here -
(Score: 2) by emg on Tuesday April 29 2014, @04:28PM
You have to pay for that fat welfare state somehow. Forcing people to hand over data and then selling it is an easy way to increase revenue.
(Score: 1) by GoonDu on Tuesday April 29 2014, @01:56PM
Forgive me for the inappropriate title. Frankly, as long as there's no identifiable information that can identify the student and the data is free not only to private company but to the public, I'm find with it but the article did state that those information is pretty damn raw.
Sure, school information is not as revealing as health data and the probability of companies maliciously exploiting these dataset is small but one can't help it but to feel uncomfortable about it. What if someone within the company decided to sell it to some malicious party?
(Score: 1) by Webweasel on Tuesday April 29 2014, @02:07PM
No Opt-out and the data is identifiable.
Seems Michael Gove is doing everything he can to make parents hate him right now.
Still this is part of the long term subtle indoctrination of our kids. Responding to a press article recently, I asked my son if the school had taken his finger print for the school library. His school had not gone that far yet, but he did tell me something a little more disturbing.
A local police officer had attended to school and shown the kids how finger prints work. Then the children lined up and had their fingerprints inked onto a small card for them to keep. Seems innocent enough, but I see it as subtle indoctrination to authority at a young age. I don't know if copies were made or taken. I do think the whole thing is entirely innocent and probably an attempt to build relationships and trust with the police.
Now they will grow up thinking that its acceptable for their personal data to be sold. Next will be my tax records, then will be my DNA and health records. Luckily the NHS have nothing on me for now.
I am not for sale and neither are my kids! Stop this!
But its already too late... far too late.
Priyom.org Number stations, Russian Military radio. "You are a bad, bad man. Do you have any other virtues?"-Runaway1956
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 29 2014, @03:33PM
We don't bother to tell the cow when it was sold do we?
(Score: 2) by juggs on Wednesday April 30 2014, @03:18AM
The police fingerprinting thing is not new - I experienced the same thing in the UK in mid - late primary school around 35 or so years ago. Police liaison officer comes and gives a talk, explaining the real basics of forensics essentially - I probably found it interesting. Then encourage the kids to get all inked up and daub their prints followed by some looking at the different shapes and patterns, compare with your friends' prints etc.
Bearing in mind this was usually an entire school year (120 - 150 kids in my case) at a time running around with inky fingers daubing each others' cards, faces, shirts etc. I find it hard to believe (cynical as I am) that it was some surreptitious means to gather comprehensive fingerprint data, it was just far too chaotic.
For sure there is some mental tomfoolery going on in this scenario, but it's along the lines of getting a large roomful of kids to sit still long enough to listen to a police person for a while - have a little fun along the way to foster engagement with and understanding of the subject.
Of course the takeaway for the kids is intended to be that the police aren't scary, they're not out to get you, in fact they will help when you need them - but remember they can track you down if you're naughty. I don't think that is widely off the mark as a takeaway for primary age kids - as far as UK policing goes at least. (Sure there are exceptions).
If you have a concern, contact your son's school and ask for the name of the liaison officer who attended - with schools being as paranoid as they are these days they will have that, his warrant ID and his base station at least. Then contact the liaison officer (or get the school to ask them to contact you if they are wormy about releasing the details) or station and request an informal meeting to discuss the matter. As a liaison officer they'll likely not require you go to the station to see them (if that gets the hackles up), they may come to you or even meet up for a coffee some place.
Is it indoctrination to authority? I see it more as a reality check. We live in a society with rules, those rules are enforced - if rules weren't enforced there would be no point those rules existing. Sounds like an ideal time to introduce the young'un to the concept of law, why it exists, why and how it gets enacted and why and how some mendacious scum manage to manipulate what ends up being enacted.
As for "sharing" health records - that's clearly coming one way or another like an unstoppable tsunami (the send an unhelpful opt-out if you care leaflet in a bundle of other Royal Mail delivered junk drop was just the first attempt to whitewash it as passive agreement - reminiscent of A Hitchiker's Guide planning notification process). My MP seems unable to inform me who the 3rd parties privy to the information may be.
I fear it is too late - the Smörgåsbord of information on the citizens of the kingdom is here for the usual high bidders to feast upon.
(Score: 1) by Webweasel on Wednesday April 30 2014, @08:20AM
Yup, your pretty much spot on.
I guess my objection is a reflection of my own dealings with the police over the years. I have never been in serious trouble, but the few encounters I have had have been rather unpleasant. Being ignored after being mugged. Being ignored when my car is broken into. Being screamed at for driving slightly to fast. Being stopped in traffic for 2 hours on the A2 so I can be told my fog lights are on and harassed when pointing out that the highway code says fog lights are yellow lenses and what I have are driving lights. Yeah traffic cops don't even know the law. Chief Wigum says "The police have no power to help you, only punish you" and that's pretty much my experience too.
I'm in the don't talk to the police, don't co-operate, and am in the "are you detaining me or am I free to go?" camp.
Its getting the balancing act right. I should be able to trust the police. I should be able to encourage my kids to trust the police. Life experience taught me this is the wrong approach, so unfortunately I cannot encourage my kids to trust them either. I should reach my kids to respect the police, but then the police should be respectable.
I actually know the liaison officer and the local PCSO's quite well. My Dad is active on the local council and lead officer of our local retained fire service. I have a good relationship with these guys, but I still don't trust them and am very careful what I say around them.
Were way off topic now, but my real concern is the acceptance that it's OK to give up biometric data. If 8 year old's think the school and police should have their finger prints, then they accept that invasion of privacy without question. By the time they reach adulthood, its so accepted as normal behavior that it becomes hard to convince them otherwise. "It's fine, its always been like this". That's what really concerns me.
Priyom.org Number stations, Russian Military radio. "You are a bad, bad man. Do you have any other virtues?"-Runaway1956
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 29 2014, @03:50PM
Another headline fail. "English school" sounds like a charter school for literature enthusiasts where you read Henry James novels, and write essays about how the literature made you feel.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 30 2014, @07:19AM
this marketing attitude will go nicely with their new DNA database.