British universities are said to have monitored students and chat groups for arms companies. This has led to loud criticism among students and unions.
The English-language The Guardian reports that several British universities have agreed to monitor the social media and chat groups of students at the request of arms companies to detect and prevent planned protests. The emails confirming this surveillance are said to be held by both The Guardian and Liberty Investigates.
This concerns protests against career fairs of companies like Rolls-Royce, Raytheon UK, BAE Systems, and Leonardo, which produce defense technology. These actions provoked criticism from student representatives and unions, who demand support for peaceful protests instead of surveillance.
Students and unions are angry, universities justify their actions
How did the students react? Student representatives and unions sharply criticized the universities for their willingness to cooperate with arms companies in surveillance and demanded more protection for peaceful protests. Jo Grady, General Secretary of the University and College Union, stated that students should not be monitored, but rather supported:
It is absolutely shameful that so many universities have spent time and resources monitoring students participating in peaceful protests against genocide, and that some have apparently done so at the behest of arms companies.
What do the affected universities say? In general, there was a mix of justification, distancing, and partly critical self-reflection. A spokesperson for Loughborough University stated that they observe certain groups, but do not monitor:
We occasionally observe the public posts of the group to warn those who might be affected by protests in advance. We do not apologize for that. We do not monitor students’ social media.
Overall, they consider the measures taken to be right and important, especially to protect universities and particularly uninvolved students from hostility and anti-Semitism.
In Germany, there are strict data protection regulations
What is the situation in Germany? Similar cases of surveillance actions are not known to have occurred at German universities so far. Although there is a growing debate in Germany about data protection, digital surveillance, and political activities of students, such widespread coordination between universities and arms companies to monitor protests has not been publicly established.
Furthermore, there is a broader societal sensitivity towards surveillance and data protection, and people in Germany generally respond very critically to it.
One example is reported by the magazine Netzpolitik.org: Some universities are using external services like Proctorio, which capture and analyze audio and video material during exams, which has led to resistance and complaints as well as legal disputes.
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