[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
IP: ISPI Clips 6.05: U. of T. Students Question Smartcard Technology & Privacy
From: "ama-gi ISPI" <[email protected]>
Subject: IP: ISPI Clips 6.05: U. of T. Students Question Smartcard Technology & Privacy
Date: Tue, 3 Nov 1998 00:19:58 -0800
To: <[email protected]>
ISPI Clips 6.05: U. of T. Students Question Smartcard Technology & Privacy
News & Info from the Institute for the Study of Privacy Issues (ISPI)
Tuesday November 3, 1998
[email protected]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This From: WIRED News, November 2, 1998
http://www.wired.com
Students Wonder: How Smart?
http://www.wired.com/news/news/politics/story/15978.html
by
Marlene Blanshay, [email protected]
TORONTO -- A coalition of University of Toronto students is leading an open
forum on smartcard technology Monday to discuss concerns that a new campus
card program may be compromising their privacy.
The T-card pilot project began last year when the university distributed
45,000 smartcards to students, staff, and faculty. Like many students
across the US, where such programs are common, the 39,000 Toronto
volunteers were sold on the convenience of having all their ID combined on
a single piece of plastic.
"[Students] don't have to carry around so many cards," said University of
Toronto registrar Karel Swift, the chairwoman of the school's T-card
implementation committee.
Not everybody feels that way. The university says it has been open about
the new program, but some students feel that the school has not been up
front with them about what is being done with information on purchases made
with the card.
"We just want some answers," said James Hooch of the Identity Technology
Working Group, the coalition of students and faculty that will host
Monday's forum.
"We feel we are being used as a captive market."
Andrew Clement, a professor of information studies at the University of
Toronto, said the university has an obligation to be more open about the
project.
"We don't think they are up to some nefarious scheme," said Clement,
moderator of Monday's forum. "But they are implementing the new technology,
which is going to be used in a wider setting, and should be setting a good
example."
Nevertheless, Swift said that students have not been left out of the
process.
"We consulted with student reps when the project was under consideration,"
Swift said. She added that the university has privacy policy and that their
records are protected by a rigorous access to information policy.
Some still worry that the university, in the interest of efficiency, is
introducing a new technology without looking at the potential uses or
misuses.
"There is a lot of concern among the students about collection of
information for purposes they are not aware of," says Jack Dimond, the
university's commissioner for freedom of information and privacy. "My
concern is that as smartcards are used more, there is a procedure of review
of information it collects. When you begin using the new applications, you
have to look at them closely."
One freedom and privacy advocate encourages students to boycott the cards.
"[Students] should just say, 'I refuse to use this card for any cash
purchases until you tell me where this info is going and what you're doing
with it,'" said David Jones, president of Electronic Frontier Canada.
Copyright � 1994-98 Wired Digital Inc.
--------------------------------NOTICE:------------------------------
ISPI Clips are news & opinion articles on privacy issues from
all points of view; they are clipped from local, national and international
newspapers, journals and magazines, etc. Inclusion as an ISPI Clip
does not necessarily reflect an endorsement of the content or opinion
by ISPI. In compliance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this material is
distributed free without profit or payment for non-profit research
and educational purposes only.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
ISPI Clips is a FREE e-mail service from the "Institute for the Study
of Privacy Issues" (ISPI). To receive "ISPI Clips" on a regular bases
(up to 3 - 8 clips per day) send the following message "Please
enter [Your Name] into the ISPI Clips list: [Your e-mail address]" to:
[email protected] .
The Institute for the Study of Privacy Issues (ISPI) is a small
contributor-funded organization based in Victoria, British Columbia
(Canada). ISPI operates on a not-for-profit basis, accepts no
government funding and takes a global perspective.
ISPI's mandate is to conduct & promote interdisciplinary research
into electronic, personal and financial privacy with a view toward
helping ordinary people understand the degree of privacy they have
with respect to government, industry and each other and to likewise
inform them about techniques to enhance their privacy.
But, none of this can be accomplished without your kind and
generous financial support. If you are concerned about the erosion
of your privacy in general, won't you please help us continue this
important work by becoming an "ISPI Supporter" or by taking out
an institute Membership?
We gratefully accept all contributions:
Less than $60 ISPI Supporter
$60 - $99 Primary ISPI Membership (1 year)
$100 - $300 Senior ISPI Membership (2 years)
More than $300 Executive Council Membership (life)
Your ISPI "membership" contribution entitles you to receive "The ISPI
Privacy Reporter" (our bi-monthly 12 page hard-copy newsletter in
multi-contributor format) for the duration of your membership.
For a contribution form with postal instructions please send the following
message "ISPI Contribution Form" to [email protected] .
We maintain a strict privacy policy. Any information you divulge to ISPI
is kept in strict confidence. It will not be sold, lent or given away to
any third party.
****************************************************
To subscribe or unsubscribe, email:
[email protected]
with the message:
(un)subscribe ignition-point email@address
or (un)subscribe ignition-point-digest email@address
****************************************************
www.telepath.com/believer
****************************************************