Podcast Series: Innovations in Education

Explore the full series of eSchool News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.

HuddleCamHD Announces Zoom-Certified PTZ Webcam

HuddleCamHD, a well-known manufacturer of affordable USB-based video conferencing cameras and audio solutions, announces two new electronic PTZ webcams: The HuddleCamHD Pro (USB 3.0), certified by Zoom Video Communications, and the Pro IP (4K NDI*). These 4K webcams, that come with a handheld IR remote to control PTZ functions, are like none on the market today. Both models feature 4K video, a dual-microphone array, and can easily clamp to a monitor or attach to a tripod to deliver a simplified video conferencing and livestreaming solution for any application.

“With today’s virtual work, learn, and entertain movements, having the right AV production equipment plays a major role in our ability to deliver engaging content and online experiences,” said Paul Richards, director of business development for HuddleCamHD. “Whether you’re running a Zoom meeting, hosting a YouTube or Facebook Live show, or creating an instructional video, the HuddleCamHD Pro is the ideal all-in-one audio and video hardware solution. There is no better entry-point electronic PTZ webcam on the market, period.”

Versatility & Mobility…Read More

Divided sentiments over fitting punishment for webcam spying

The Rutgers webcam case was recently linked to this year's presidential race.

As the trial of former Rutgers University freshman Dharun Ravi riveted the nation earlier this year, there seemed to be a widespread consensus that his high-tech spying on his gay roommate was heinous and should be punished.

But when the jury convicted Ravi of bias crimes and invasion of privacy, there was little public agreement about what should happen next.

What’s a just penalty for an 18-year-old offender who seemed to have been clueless about the risk of such dire consequences?…Read More

Feds: No charges in school laptop-spying case

A school accused of spying on students through remote-activated webcams will not be charged.
A school accused of spying on students through remote-activated webcams will not face criminal charges.

No criminal charges will be filed against a suburban Philadelphia school district that secretly snapped tens of thousands of webcam photographs and screen shots on laptops issued to students.

The FBI and federal prosecutors announced Aug. 17 that they could not prove any criminal wrongdoing by Lower Merion School District employees.

“We have not found evidence that would establish beyond a reasonable doubt that anyone involved had criminal intent,” U.S. Attorney Zane D. Memeger said in a statement.…Read More

Second lawsuit filed over Lower Merion webcam snooping

A second lawsuit has been filed on behalf of a student whose laptop web camera was secretly and remotely activated by a Pennsylvania school district, reports the Philadelphia Inquirer. The letter from Lower Merion school administrators delivered the news three weeks ago–her son had been secretly monitored by the webcam on his school-issued laptop. But only when Fatima Hasan saw the evidence did the scope of the spying on her son Jalil become apparent. There were more than 1,000 images surreptitiously captured by the computer: 469 webcam photographs and 543 screen shots. All were evidence in the case against the Lower Merion School District and its now-abandoned electronic monitoring policy. “I was really shocked. I didn’t know what I was walking into,” Fatima Hasan said July 27 after her son, now 18, filed a civil lawsuit for invasion of privacy against the Lower Merion district and others. “They were all pictures of Jalil, and all web shots from his laptop, and that’s not an easy feeling.” The suit joins one filed in February by Blake Robbins, a student at Harriton High School, and for the first time draws in Lower Merion High School, where Jalil Hasan was a senior. For the high-achieving school district, the second civil suit raises the stakes in an already-costly legal fight. The cases are similar in their broad outlines. The electronic monitoring began after school-issued computers were reported missing. In both cases, the system was simply left on long after the laptops were recovered. Hundreds of photos and screen shots were captured on a predetermined schedule. According to the most recent estimates, the combined legal bills and other case-related expenses from Robbins’ suit alone have reached about $1.2 million already…

Click here for the full story

…Read More

Official: FBI probing school webcam spying case

The FBI reportedly is probing whether any federal wiretap laws were violated.
The FBI reportedly is probing whether any federal wiretap laws were violated.

A Pennsylvania school district accused of secretly switching on laptop computer webcams inside students’ homes is under investigation by federal authorities, a law-enforcement official with knowledge of the case told the Associated Press (AP).

For its part, the district says it never used webcam images to monitor or discipline students and believes one of its administrators has been “unfairly portrayed and unjustly attacked.”

The Federal Bureau of Investigation will look into whether any federal wiretap or computer-intrusion laws were violated by Lower Merion School District officials, the official—who spoke on condition of anonymity—told the AP on Feb. 19.…Read More

School district sued for using webcams to spy on students

Students reportedly have put tape over the webcams in their school-issued laptops in light of the allegations.
Students reportedly have put tape over the webcams in their school-issued laptops in light of the allegations.

A suburban Philadelphia school district used the webcams in school-issued laptop computers to spy on students at home, potentially catching them and their families in compromising situations, a family claims in a federal lawsuit.

Lower Merion School District officials would not comment on the accusation, but angry students already have responded by putting tape on their laptop cameras and microphones.

Sophomore Tom Halperin described students as “pretty disgusted” and noted that his class recently read 1984, the George Orwell classic that coined the term “Big Brother.”…Read More