Biometrics And RFID Tracking In UK Education

UK Column -

In 2001, a decision was made by the Information Commissioner’s Office that schools using biometric systems did not breach the Data Protection Act. This decision gave Britain the accolade of being the first country in the world to commercially market biometric technology to UK schools.

In the UK, schools hold masses of data about our children.  They are one of the most surveilled school populations in the world, not only in the subjects they study, their health and eating habits, but also through the use of biometrics and location RFID tagging.

Between 2001 and 2012, biometric systems in education were initially used for library systems in primary and secondary schools. By 2006 biometrics were increasingly used for cashless catering, school lockers, school trip money payments and registration.

In 2005, privacy organisations and parents concerned about the use of biometrics in schools began lobbying Parliament, with a particular focus on the fact that schools were taking children’s biometrics without informing parents.

A person’s biometric data does not fall under Part 2 of the Data Protection Act (DPA), Sensitive Personal Data. In a child’s case any Sensitive Personal Data needs parental permission if the schools wish to use it, therefore as biometric data is not included in this category of the DPA schools could use children’s biometrics and not need to tell parents.

In May 2012, the Protection of Freedom Act was passed requiring schools to:

notify each parent of the child of its intent to process the child’s biometric information and that the parent may object at anytime.

Under this legislation, a school cannot process a child’s biometric information unless:

at least one parent of the child consents  …  and … no parent of the child has withdrawn consent or otherwise objected

If at any time the child refuses, the school cannot process their biometric information. This law becomes enforceable in September 2013 and is globally the first national law on consent regarding children’s biometric data.

Since 2001, private biometric companies have had free run of the UK schools market and the nation’s children. This has been very much to the biometric industry’s advantage with different types of biometric technology tested on the UK’s children, including fingerprint scanners, infrared facial scans, iris scanning, infrared palm scanning and infrared fingertip scanning.

An establishment taking and using a child’s biometrics, without parental knowledge, sends some fundamental messages to a child. It devalues a parent’s input into raising a child and reinforces to the child that that establishment has the responsibility to make these types of decisions.

Read More: ukcolumn.org