School Climate & Safety News in Brief

Miss. AG Sues Google Inc. Over Student-Data Privacy

By Benjamin Herold — January 24, 2017 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Google’s commitment to student-data privacy is again under scrutiny, this time over allegations that the company is violating a state consumer-protection law.

Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood filed a lawsuit earlier this month alleging that Google’s policies and practices regarding online tracking of students remain unclear, despite the company’s public pledge to not collect and use student data for commercial purposes, such as targeting advertisements to students.

The suit seeks to force Google to be more transparent about its free, web-based G Suite for Education service, used by tens of millions of students worldwide, including more than half of the roughly 500,000 K-12 students in Mississippi.

“Through this lawsuit, we want to know the extent of Google’s data mining and marketing of student information to third parties,” Hood said in a statement.

Hood previously sought to investigate whether the company was aiding illegal music pirating and drug sales, an effort the company said was part of a smear campaign coordinated by Hood’s financial backers. In a letter to Mississippi superintendents, the attorney general asked schools to preserve evidence that could be relevant to the state’s suit.

A version of this article appeared in the January 25, 2017 edition of Education Week as Miss. AG Sues Google Inc. Over Student-Data Privacy

Events

Ed-Tech Policy Webinar Artificial Intelligence in Practice: Building a Roadmap for AI Use in Schools
AI in education: game-changer or classroom chaos? Join our webinar & learn how to navigate this evolving tech responsibly.
Education Webinar Developing and Executing Impactful Research Campaigns to Fuel Your Ed Marketing Strategy 
Develop impactful research campaigns to fuel your marketing. Join the EdWeek Research Center for a webinar with actionable take-aways for companies who sell to K-12 districts.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Privacy & Security Webinar
Navigating Cybersecurity: Securing District Documents and Data
Learn how K-12 districts are addressing the challenges of maintaining a secure tech environment, managing documents and data, automating critical processes, and doing it all with limited resources.
Content provided by Softdocs

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

School Climate & Safety Opinion What Do Restorative Practices Look Like in Schools?
Such practices teach students how to resolve disputes amicably, own their actions, and be empathetic and forgiving.
9 min read
Images shows colorful speech bubbles that say "Q," "&," and "A."
iStock/Getty
School Climate & Safety School Dress Codes Often Target Girls. What Happens When Male Teachers Have to Enforce Them?
Male teachers say the task can put them in a risky and uncomfortable position.
11 min read
Image of articles of clothing on a coat hook outside a school entrance.
Laura Baker/Education Week via Canva
School Climate & Safety Are School Buses Safe? An Expert Explains
A perennial concern is getting new attention.
4 min read
Photo of rescue workers and turned over school bus.
Brandy Taylor / iStock / Getty Images Plus
School Climate & Safety A School Removed Bathroom Mirrors to Keep Students From Making TikToks. Will It Work?
The desperate strategy for keeping students in class illuminates the challenge schools face in competing with social media.
5 min read
Empty blue school bathroom showing the bathroom sinks without mirrors.
iStock/Getty