Virtual Learning & Privacy Amid Covid-19

This study investigates the ways in which the shift to online/remote learning has impacted student’s privacy and whether educational institutions have adequate policies in place to deal with these new challenges.

Privacy concerns have been central to discourse around Covid-19, particularly with the use of digital interactive platforms such as Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet. These seemingly secure platforms have become targets of data theft and tools for information collection; for example, in 2020, five hundred thousand Zoom users’ login information was leaked in a massive data breach. Some platforms also passively collect information. For example, Microsoft processes users’ personal data such as their meetings, conversation chats, voicemails, shared files, and more, as mentioned in their Online Services Terms. 

This study investigates the ways in which the shift to online/remote learning has impacted student’s privacy and whether educational institutions have adequate policies in place to deal with these new challenges.