Violated HDD privacy?!?! What to do?

[astcell]

Maybe when he gets out of the school he will find a renewed love of his privacy, and from that learn to respect the privacy of others. I guess if all virus writers got viruses before they started writing viruses, maybe they'd reconsider.

[skroo]

Sounds like they are a bunch of snoops then. I'd put stuff on the HDD just to give them something to do. I bet they search your underwear drawer when you are in class!

Speaking as another ex-boarding school pupil (Ireland, not SA)... Yeah, they would literally do that.

I sympathise with furion's position: I've been in it myself, but given the technology of the time (late '80s, early '90s), it was with different media. Books (Hunter S. Thompson, P.J. O'Rourke) and music (Sex Pistols, Therapy?).

He ultimately got the best possible deal going given the situation: the recovery of his hardware. SA at least has a Constitution, and while he's quite legitimately pissed-off, he's still a minor. That majorly limits his rights, and pretty much gives the school outright power to do what it sees fit.

No, that doesn't make it right. No, they should not have confiscated his HDD. But it's an occupational hazard of living in a controlled environment. It sucks and I have nothing but sympathy for his position, but unless you've been in it it's impossible to know how it works.

One of the best quotes I ever heard about the public (reverse of the American sense of the term) school system was that it prepares you for life in prison, or the army, or both. This is a damned fine example of that - expectations of privacy are out the door. Not that it makes it better, but it is a valid fact.

[astcell]

Sounds like they are a bunch of snoops then. I'd put stuff on the HDD just to give them something to do. I bet they search your underwear drawer when you are in class!

[Furion]

Why wasn't the HDD in NTFS format with some cheaply available software for real security?

Um, it was in NTFS

[astcell]

Why wasn't the HDD in NTFS format with some cheaply available software for real security?

[ck3k]

What a lame ass school, I mostly use my compuers after 11pm. The public school I went to always threated to confiscate my laptop, but never did. My school (HS) was very shady, we had a dunce of a teacher who thought he knew about computers and always seemed to think I was up to no good, course these people had nothing better to do, I am going back for homecomming in a few days and I have some choice words if I see our old IT guy there.

[atripes]

make the ressurections stop

please, make them stop.

[windwalker3579]

The saying it's a privelage, and can be revoked at anytime I'd think covers the computer usage. Even in your room, It is part of the school, even though it's your room I don't think privacy is covered. As the others have said

[Furion]

It's not any different from them taking a bag in your room and searching it. Thing is, as far as the law's concerned, you're a minor under the authority of the school and they can (unless their policy states otherwise) do that.

Now, if they had refused to return it, you probably would have grounds to do something.

I'm going to assume you're in high school, in which case you'll soon be done with them, anyway. Don't screw yourself over trying to get revenge on them

your assumption would be correct... I finish on the 18th Nov... There is no policy in regards to computers in your rooms... Only that it is a privilage and it can be revoked at any time for proper cause. There is nothing say that what they did was right etc.

[Zelazny's Cat]

It's not any different from them taking a bag in your room and searching it. Thing is, as far as the law's concerned, you're a minor under the authority of the school and they can (unless their policy states otherwise) do that.

Now, if they had refused to return it, you probably would have grounds to do something.

I'm going to assume you're in high school, in which case you'll soon be done with them, anyway. Don't screw yourself over trying to get revenge on them

[Furion]

-_-...
EOC no help to you?

Ok ok I woud not fight this to much. You got your computer back and you where not suspended. Now whats the point of sueing the school?

The only reason why I've got my comp is cause I took it back because they are fucking me around!

[Furion]

then do everything you can to get around them and make a complete mockery of their system while staying entirely within the bounds of not getting in trouble. it will be a quidproquo of making each others lives miserable... kinda like the corporate world. ... or just abide by the rules i guess.. bueller!

also script the poweron so that it will be on asap in the morning just where you left off the night before.
... or ... naw.. other cool ideas are probably beyond the scope of affordability and practicality.

That is what I'm trying to do... Do stuff to them without breaking any of the rules...

and about the script... how'd I do that?

[converge]

.. Ask for the policy to be detailed *in writing* as to what constitutes a violation when using a personal computer, as well as what the penalties of infractions would be.

then do everything you can to get around them and make a complete mockery of their system while staying entirely within the bounds of not getting in trouble. it will be a quidproquo of making each others lives miserable... kinda like the corporate world. ... or just abide by the rules i guess.. bueller!

something you might consider is syncing your clock to when your box has to be out.. set your power management to kill the screen and throw your box into suspend to disk. also script the poweron so that it will be on asap in the morning just where you left off the night before. ... or... if you are not _required_ to power the unit off, but just not be using it, simply kill the screen and let it keep processing while you snooze.

... or ... naw.. other cool ideas are probably beyond the scope of affordability and practicality.

[octalpus]

I am going to assume that since you are in boarding school, you are a minor. Obviously, laws vary according to country, but for the sake of this argument, I'm going to assume that your laws mostly work the way ours do.

Operating on that assumption, your guardians (in this case, your school administrators, as they are responsible for you in the absence of your parents) can do anything they please as long as they are not abusive. They are not required to give you privacy. The constitution protects you from the government, not your guardians. Once you reach the age of consent in your country, you will have the rights to defend your rights in civil court. Right now, barring any abuse, you don't. Sorry.

Removing the hdd does not void your warranty. If there were anything incriminating on there, shame on you. Learn to follow the rules, which are generally to maintain your well being (yes, contrary to popular belief, you really do need sleep in order to function properly).

Now, about the grey areas... Yeah, what they did was shitty. You should discuss this with your school administrators and get a firm definition of policy. Ask for the policy to be detailed *in writing* as to what constitutes a violation when using a personal computer, as well as what the penalties of infractions would be.

[Furion]

Well, in the first line, I did say that I hade been to other forums and that I was just wanting to know what you guys thought about the situation.

I've been through the rules etc... and I don't find anything that deals with having your own pc... The only rules there are about computers are the school computers and internet usage... Nothing about personal PC's.