{"id":7071673,"date":"2026-10-01T18:06:38","date_gmt":"2026-10-01T18:06:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7071673"},"modified":"2026-10-01T18:06:38","modified_gmt":"2026-10-01T18:06:38","slug":"how-to-protect-your-childs-digital-privacy-at-school","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7071673","title":{"rendered":"How to Protect Your Child\u2019s Digital Privacy at School"},"content":{"rendered":"


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When I started this blog in 2008, my goal was to help families navigate parenting in the digital age by empowering you to make decisions about the kinds of devices and tools that were right for your family. These days it doesn\u2019t seem like we get much of a choice. When it comes to the many digital tools kids are using in their classrooms, it feels impossible to protect your child\u2019s digital privacy at school.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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When I taught middle school computer science and engineering, I had a collection of digital tools I used as a teacher with my students and other ones I relied on as a parent. I handed out paper copies of some assignments, but others were distributed and collected digitally through online learning management systems like Canvas and Google Classroom that also served as my gradebook. I communicated with parents through Canvas, my school email, and the Remind app. My computer science students logged into Code.org to complete assignments and my 7th<\/sup> graders asked to play Kahoot! multiple times each class period.<\/p>\n

Photo by UK Black Tech<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/p>\n

Photo by Annie Spratt<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/p>\n

Photo by Thomas Park<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/p>\n

Why it\u2019s Important to Protect Your Child\u2019s Digital Privacy at School<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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Photo by UK Black Tech<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

While we may be able to limit what is being gathered about our kids at home, there\u2019s a lot of personal information being gathered about our kids at school. The collection of digital tools being used for educational purposes means it\u2019s hard to protect your child\u2019s digital privacy at school. Personal information about your child is being shared with their school system, learning apps, sports programs, parent portals, and other third-party services.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s hard to know who has data about our children, why they need it, or how long they\u2019re keeping it.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

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Photo by Thomas Park<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

To help answer this question, I asked Raj Ananthanpillai<\/a>, author of\u00a0The Trust Crisis: How Big Tech Stole Your Identity\u2014and the New Model That Takes It Back<\/a>. Raj is the founder and CEO of\u00a0Trua<\/a>, a\u00a0digital identity-verification and screening company and a leading authority on digital trust, identity, and privacy.<\/p>\n

The biggest thing Raj wants parents to know is school and other neighborhood\u00a0apps increase children\u2019s personal data exposure. \u00a0<\/p>\n

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Raj Ananthanpillai<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

These days a child\u2019s digital footprint<\/a> and digital identity is being built long before they\u2019re old enough to understand or control them. According to Raj, much of that information may remain in databases for years- and vulnerable to exposure.<\/p>\n

Raj believes school apps and the third-party vendors that support them often collect more personal information about children than is needed for learning. These tools gather names, dates of birth, contact details, student IDs, behavior records, health information, device data, and usage patterns. They then share that information with analytics companies, cloud services, tracking tools, and other partners.<\/p>\n

Once the data leaves the school, it sits in large databases that attract attackers. One weak password or unencrypted file can expose records for millions of students.<\/p>\n

Children\u2019s data is useful to criminals because it has little prior history of fraud. Stolen information can be used years later for identity theft<\/a> or to build false identities.<\/p>\n

The problem is that organizations collect and keep personal details they may not need right away. Raj says this creates stores of data that are hard to protect fully. Each extra vendor or app adds another place where a child\u2019s information is held and another group that can reach it. The result is long-term risk that follows the child past school.<\/p>\n

7 Questions to Ask to Protect Your Child\u2019s Digital Privacy at School<\/strong><\/h2>\n

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Raj recommends parents consider requests for a child\u2019s personal details to protect your child\u2019s digital privacy at school by asking why.<\/p>\n