Immense Unease Over Advertisers Nabbing Student Data: Poll
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| A server build technician stands at a work bench while monitoring a clients data and performing maintenance inside pod two of International Business Machines Corp.'s Softlayer data center in Dallas. Most U.S. school districts rely on cloud computing services, but an overwhelming number of Americans fear student data may fall into the hands of companies, including advertisers. (Ben Torres/Bloomberg via Getty Images) | Bloomberg via Getty Images |
As technology continues to seep into U.S. classrooms, an overwhelming number of parents and others worry that children's private information may not be secure.
A whopping 89 percent of Americans reported they are "very" or "somewhat" concerned about "advertisers using personal data about children to market to them," according to a nationally representative survey conducted by the Benenson Strategy Group on behalf of Common Sense Media, an advocacy group for children and families. The survey asked questions of 800 registered voters, including 227 parents, by phone earlier this month, and has a 3.5 percent margin of error.
The poll found that while only 37 percent of the public has "seen, read, or heard" "some" or "a great deal" about schools collecting, storing and sharing information, including age, weight and grades, 90 percent are "somewhat" or "very" concerned about private companies having access to student data.
"Student privacy and the protection of data is about to explode as an issue in the United States," said James Steyer, who heads Common Sense Media. "The numbers