Filed under: Education, Odds and ends, MacBook
Remote webcam activation now disabled in software that led to controversy at Pennsylvania school
The suburban Philadelphia school being investigated for spying on students using MacBook laptops will lose the ability to turn on the built-in cameras remotely when they update their security software.Absolute Software, new owners of the LANrev remote administration suite (formerly owned and developed by Pole Position GmbH), say they are going to remove the webcam remote activation feature from the software this week.
In a note to customers today, the company said:
"We know that webcam pictures are an ineffective tool in tracking down the location of a stolen computer. Taking pictures of lawful computer users without their permission, and without law enforcement involvement, is contrary to Absolute's policies and is inconsistent with our existing, more effective product offering."
"Based on recent events, we have received many inquiries about TheftTrack from customers who are concerned and who want to ensure their organizations are not involved in a similar incident."
As a result, the webcam feature is being removed in all updated versions of the software as of tomorrow. Current customers still have the feature, but they are being advised by the company to get the latest update.
Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Inquirer is reporting that two I.T. employees of the Lower Merion School District have been placed on leave while an investigation continues.
The incident received national attention when the parents of a Harriton High School sophomore filed a federal lawsuit on February 16, alleging that school officials were activating the iSight cameras built into MacBook computers while students were using the computers at home.
The school has said the cameras were only turned on to locate stolen laptops, but several students said they saw the green camera light come on several times on computers that had not been reported stolen.
Federal Agents are also investigating, and have asked the school for all records relating to the incident.
The school says it has stopped using the software for accessing the webcams remotely. Over the last two years, the district has provided MacBooks to all 2,300 high school students.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
AriX said 9:26PM on 3-08-2010
I know a couple of kids who go to this school and I'm pretty sure this whole thing is just a way to make that family money. I don't think these kids were actually spied on, especially given the vice principal's comments on the matter.
Apparently the family has sued the school district before, too...
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Gazoobee said 9:23AM on 3-09-2010
You don't do logic very well do you? :)
The entire reason this was discovered was that the vice-principal was spying on a student at home, but you "don't think these kids were actually spied on"???? WTF? "Spying," involves illegally watching or listening to someone without their knowledge or consent. This is exactly that.
Also of note ... "two IT employees were suspended," almost certainly means that they were doing some extra-curricular spying as well. If they were presumably just exercising their duties in accordance with their job, and taking directions from their supervisors, there would be no reason to suspend them would there?
I think you'll find that these guys probably availed themselves of the opportunity to spy in little girls and boys bedrooms quite frequently.
AriX said 11:05AM on 3-09-2010
OK then, it was probably a mistake for me to post here. Let me make it clear:
I'm pretty sure the vice principal did not at all spy on this kid, and neither did anyone else at this school. I think the employees were put on leave for legal reasons.
Of course it wasn't right for them to even have the ability to do this, especially without telling parents and students in advance, but basically I think the family in question is totally lying about the situation or at least extremely stretching the truth in order to get some money from the school district.
AriX said 11:23AM on 3-09-2010
For example, here's an excerpt of a Philly.com article on the subject:
"The laptop case 'does not remind me of George Orwell's 1984, as some people are saying,' said Andy Derrow, whose son attends Harriton. 'This reminds me of the balloon boy in Colorado.'
'People are getting only one side of the story. We know these administrators. If it were true the district were spying on people, that would be reprehensible. We don't believe that happened.'"
jessicaleiz said 12:44PM on 3-09-2010
If I were the student and I knew beforehand that someone was spying on me, I will put the laptop's cam in-front of a big sinister poster and say, "This is what you get for spying!" 24/7.. lol
Every school has their own policies for their student, but this one is quite absurd and getting out of hand. Other School Spying story: http://bit.ly/school-spying-on-kids-worst
kbotc said 9:46PM on 3-08-2010
Except webcam footage was submitted in an abuse case. They made the information public.
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AriX said 11:07AM on 3-09-2010
Please link me to this "footage". What you say is absolutely false, no images of kids using these computers have been released. In fact the system they were using could only take still pictures, not any video.
Kevin said 9:48PM on 3-08-2010
sounds great in theory and all..but since when do schools actually update software? tape over the lens fixes the problem easy as well
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nicleT said 11:08PM on 3-08-2010
Exactly my thoughts.
jakethepianist said 6:45AM on 3-09-2010
I think that the students' accounts at my middle school are still using Windows 98 and the teachers use Windows 2003. Students get Office 2003 and Teachers get Office 2007.
williamlane said 10:06PM on 3-08-2010
My understanding is that the green indicator light did not come on when this software was activated. If that is the case then all those other students were delusional, had some other software using the camera or, just maybe, were 'jumping on the bandwagon'.
Personal view, 'A man's home is his castle' taken into consideration, if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear. IF the software was implemented properly, that is, to be activated in the case of a lost or stolen device, then WHY would we as a society think that if the thief can make it 'home' before he opens said stolen property then he is deemed 'safe' 'cause the nasty naughty school district/cops/whoever have 'invaded his privacy'? Silly, at the least. Let's take this a step further. You learn who stole your laptop. You are able to see the laptop inside the thief's home. You call the cops. The cops arrive, ream you out for being a 'peeping Tom', maybe on a good day even arrest you. At the end of it all, the thief keeps the laptop, you swallow hard, cough up the money and buy a replacement. Meanwhile, there sits your property, plain as can be, sitting on the thief's lap. We seem nowadays to automatically assume, in fact 'know' that the district/IT people/administrators/cops are, for sure, 100% absolutely WRONG. That they MUST all be perverts/thieves/child abusers or whatever. There are 'less desirable' people in every walk of life, but nowadays we seem to paint everyone with the same brush. Maybe it's because so many folks now call the lawyer to sue the horrible people, oftentimes before they even call 'the authorities'. Sad state of affairs.
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michas_pi said 12:06AM on 3-09-2010
@williamlane:
>if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear
I'm coming to your residence tomorrow to install video surveillance equipment in every room.
If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear.
AriX said 11:10AM on 3-09-2010
It's actually the opposite. I'm not 100% sure about this bit, but I'm pretty sure that the way the system works is that it takes a picture every hour or so on the user's computer, and the light DOES go on. This is why students have reported the lights going on periodically for the last while, and one of the reasons they initially thought that this alleged "spying" had actually taken place.
The pictures are only uploaded to the school's computers when specifically requested.
MRCUR said 11:32PM on 3-08-2010
This seems like overkill to me... If I had remote tracking software on my MacBook, I'd absolutely want the ability to use the camera as part of the software. I also happen to work in the IT department of a private school in PA and I still think this is getting out of hand. For LANrev to remove this feature for ALL of their customers is just stupid. This CAN be an effective tool in finding a stolen laptop, but should only be administered by trusted IT department members and upper level administration.
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Farmboy said 1:18PM on 3-09-2010
Much of the original incident doesn't pass the smell test to me.
Point 1: the family that's suing the school is doing so because their kid claims he was accused of doing drugs in front of the camera. Schools in the real world don't make accusations like that then just drop them - and according to the kid, this happened last Nov. He would've been investigated, suspended, the parents and the police notified... and the school can document that there was no action taken last fall.
Point 2: the school claims they've only turned on the cameras remotely to track down lost or stolen laptops (remember, these are school property). The feces struck the oscillator this Feb. because the kid claimed his laptop was stolen. When the camera was turned on they found that this was a lie. The kid was in serious trouble for making a false theft report - and suddenly it's "Mom! Dad! They're spying on me!"
Point 3: In many schools, kids and their parents sign what's called an acceptable use agreement for things like this. The school provides a laptop, and in exchange the kid acts responsibly. No surfing porn, no torrents, no selling the laptop on Craigslist, that sort of thing. Most importantly, you agree to the same sort of supervision as is found on school grounds. I don't know if an AUA was signed in this case, but if so, the parents may find that they agreed to the webcam being used remotely to track lost/stolen property.
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