Cyberbullying, the Guarantor for privacy takes the field

The document seeks to sensitize families, schools and students on the subject of personal data, especially after the numerous cases in the news

It is appropriate to say that privacy arrives at school desks. The Guarantor for the Protection of Personal Data has published a vademecum entitled "Privacy-proof school" aimed at institutions, families and students.

A document made particularly necessary especially after the numerous cases of cyberbullying and sexting that were born right inside the classroom and that in some cases have had dramatic consequences. With the vademecum the Guarantor aims, therefore, to outline the behaviors to be taken when it comes to managing personal information and sensitive data, especially in a highly connected society, where just press a button to destroy the life of a person. The document is divided into several parts and touches on several topics ranging from schools' management of student data, to the use of smartphones and tablets during classes, to digital identity and video surveillance.

General Rules

In the first part "General Rules," the Privacy Guarantor describes the right that students and families have to know how schools, public and private, handle and store their personal information. According to the document, institutions have an obligation to inform "data subjects what data they collect, how they use it, and for what purpose." In caso di violazione della privacy, la persona coinvolta può presentare una segnalazione o un reclamo presso il Garante.

Vita dello studente

La seconda parte “Vita dello studente” sottolinea, invece, gli obblighi che le scuole hanno quando devono maneggiare una serie di informazioni sensibili che vanno dall’iscrizione scolastica, ai temi in classe, ai voti degli esami e delle prove, fino ad arrivare alla mensa. Secondo il Garante per la protezione dei dati personali le scuole devono fare attenzione a non divulgare, ad esempio sul proprio sito internet, informazioni non rilevanti ed estremamente sensibili (stato di salute della persona, condizioni economiche, razza, orientamento sessuale).

Mondo Connesso e Nuove Tecnologie

cyberbullismo-1.jpgFonte foto: Shutterstock

Stop al bullismo

La sezione “Mondo Connesso e Nuove Tecnologie” tocca direttamente gli studenti e, in modo particolare, cerca di richiamare l’attenzione sui rischi, anche drammatici, che la tecnologia può avere sulla vita delle persone. Come si legge sul vademecum, “i giovani devono essere consapevoli che le proprie azioni in rete possono produrre effetti negativi anche nella vita reale e per un tempo indefinito. Troppi ragazzi, insultati, discriminati, vittime di cyberbulli, soffrono, possono essere costretti a cambiare scuola o, nei casi più tragici, arrivare al suicidio”. In these cases, the Privacy Guarantor invites students to inform their family and school and not to wait for the event to get worse.

Online Publication and Video Surveillance

Finally, the last two chapters talk about transparency, publicity and video surveillance.  In the first case, the Guarantor recalls that the school has the obligation not to make public sensitive information that should remain confidential and not to keep data online beyond the time allowed. This is the case, for example, of school rankings. In the section "Video surveillance and other cases", the Data Protection Authority dictates the rules regarding the use of recording systems. Cameras must be properly marked and activated only in areas subject to vandalism and theft and turned on only during the hours when the school is closed.