Parents Upset When Safety Demo Uses Facebook Info

3-6-2010 New Hampshire:

Investigator Poses As Teen To Friend Students At Local High School

LANGDON, N.H. -- Some parents and students are upset that a high school used students' Facebook photos and information to teach a lesson on Internet safety in a school assembly.

Fall Mountain Regional High School Principal Thomas Ronning said Investigator Jennifer Frank of the Plymouth State University Police Department logged onto Facebook and represented herself as a teenager from the region. Frank managed to get more than 300 students to befriend her on the site.

By doing so, she was able to obtain personal information and photographs of students, and some of it was displayed in the assembly.

The principal said all of the information collected was already shared by students and available on the Web.

But parent Steve Fortier said some students were targeted and humiliated. He said he understands the dangers the school was trying to warn students about, but he said using students' actual Facebook pages went over the line.

Fortier said he thinks the pictures and information shown should have been generic or about teenagers no one knew.

"That lesson is a very important one," he said. "I just question the use of actual students from the school to make that point."

Ronning said he stands by his decision, saying a similar presentation was made at Stevens High School in Claremont. He said that in that case, 400 students befriended the investigator.

"This is information shared by the students, put out there, and Investigator Frank brought it all forward, saying 'Do you want your birth date out there? Do you want your address out there?'" Ronning said.

Fortier said that he believes students should have been talked to privately, rather than having their information displayed in the assembly. He said he's also upset parents weren't told what would happen. The ACLU said the lesson and the school crossed a line.

"I am opposed to schools monitoring and disciplining students for activities that occur off the school grounds," said Claire Ebel of the ACLU. "I think it's inappropriate."

Ronning said that if he gets the opportunity, he would do it again. He said he wants to teach students that if they have 1,300 "friends" online, they don't always know those people personally and shouldn't be sharing personal information with them. ..Source.. WMUR New Hampshire 9