Overview
Academic Earth describes its service as a collection of free online college courses from the world’s top universities. The terms are unclear whether the service supports interactions between trusted users and/or students, but they do use social media. The terms do state that the service can share a user's personal information with third parties for their business purposes. The terms state that the service may display contextual and targeted advertisements to users and that collected data is used to track and target advertisements to users on other third-party websites or services across the internet. In addition, the terms state the service requires users create an account to securely access additional features of the services, and the terms provide basic information about reasonable security practices the services use to protect personal information.
Academic Earth can be accessed through its website. The Privacy Policy and Terms of Use used for this evaluation can be found on Academic Earth’s website. This evaluation only considers policies that have been made publicly available prior to an individual using the application or service.
Safety
The terms are unclear whether the service supports interactions between trusted users and/or students. The terms state users should also be careful if they decide to post personally identifiable information, such as their full name, email address, telephone number or street address because the service does not filter information before it is made publicly visible.
Privacy
The terms state the service may collect personal information, such as name, telephone number, mailing address, and email address, as well any other information for the purpose of providing degrees, programs, and for their other business uses. The terms do state that the service can share a user's personal information with the company's business clients and other third parties. Also, the terms do state that the service may display contextual and targeted advertisements to users and that collected data is used to track and target advertisements to users on other third-party websites or services across the internet. Lastly, the terms note that users agree to receive marketing related communications and promotions to their mobile device phone number.
Security
The terms state the service requires users create an account to securely access additional features of the services, and the terms provide basic information about any reasonable security practices the services uses to protect personal information. In addition, the terms do state that they provide notice to users in the event of a data breach if required by law to do so.
Compliance
The terms provide some information about a student's data privacy rights to access or modify their personal information from the service if the user contacts the company for this service.
Overall Score
Every privacy rating includes an overall score. A higher score (up to 100%) means the product provides more transparent privacy policies with better practices to protect user data. The score is best used is as an indicator of how much additional work a person will need to do to make an informed decision about a product.
| Basic Score | Full Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Comprehensive Assessment | 43 | 38 |
Concerns
The privacy evaluation process summarizes the policies of an application or service into concern categories based on a subset of evaluation questions that can be used to quickly identify particular practices of a vendor’s policies. These concerns are composed of evaluation questions that can be used to calculate scores relative to that concern.
| Concern | Basic Score | Full Score |
|---|---|---|
| Data Collection: Protecting personal information | 25 | 35 |
| Data Sharing: Protecting data from third parties | 75 | 70 |
| Data Security: Protecting against unauthorized access | 50 | 30 |
| Data Rights: Controlling data use | 63 | 55 |
| Data Sold: Preventing sale of data | 50 | 10 |
| Data Safety: Promoting responsible use | 25 | 40 |
| Ads & Tracking: Prohibiting the exploitation of users' decision making process | 42 | 55 |
| Parental Consent: Protecting children’s personal information | 0 | 20 |
| School Purpose: Following student data privacy laws | 0 | 0 |
Statutes
Each statute or regulation is associated with one or more evaluation questions. As such, we can calculate scores for each statute or regulation using only those questions associated with the statute or regulation. Each specific statute or regulation's score serves as an indirect proxy indicating the likelihood of the application or service satisfying all of its compliance obligations.
| Statute | Basic Score | Full Score |
|---|---|---|
| California Online Privacy Protection Act (CalOPPA) | 75 | 62 |
| Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) | 39 | 37 |
| Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) | 33 | 25 |
| Student Online Personal Information Protection Act (SOPIPA) | 42 | 37 |
| General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) | 43 | 34 |
Privacy Policy Details
1: Transparency
1.1: Policy Version
- Privacy policies do indicate a version or effective date.
- Privacy policies do not indicate a changelog or past policy version is available.
1.2: Policy Notice
- Users are notified if there are any material changes to the policies.
- Privacy policies indicate the method used to notify a user when policies are updated.
1.3: Policy Changes
- Unclear whether users are notified prior to any material changes to the policies.
- Changes to the policies are effective immediately and continued use of the product indicates consent.
1.4: Policy Coverage
- Privacy policies indicate the products that are covered by the policies.
1.5: Policy Contact
- Users cannot contact the vendor about any privacy policy questions, complaints, or material changes to the policies.
1.6: Policy Principles
- Privacy policies do indicate any privacy principles, layered notices, or a table of contents.
1.7: Policy Language
- Privacy policies are not available in multiple languages.
1.8: Intended Use
- Unclear whether intended for children under 13.
- Unclear whether intended for teens.
- Unclear whether intended for adults over 18.
- Unclear whether intended for parents or guardians.
- Unclear whether intended for students.
- Unclear whether intended for teachers.
2: Focused Collection
2.1: Data Collection
- Personally identifiable information (PII) is collected.
- The categories of collected personally identifiable information are indicated.
- Geolocation data are collected.
- Unclear whether this product collects biometric or health data.
- Behavioral data are collected.
- Sensitive data are collected.
- Non-personally identifiable information is collected.
- Unclear whether free or reduced lunch status is collected.
2.2: Data Source
- Unclear whether personal information or education records are collected from preK-12 students.
- Unclear whether this product collects personal information online from children under 13 years of age.
2.3: Data Exclusion
- Unclear whether specific types of personal information are not collected.
- Unclear whether specific types of collected information are excluded from the privacy policy.
2.4: Data Limitation
- Unclear whether the collection or use of data is limited to product requirements.
3: Data Sharing
3.1: Data Shared With Third Parties
- Collected information is shared with third parties.
- The categories of information shared with third parties are indicated.
3.2: Data Use by Third Parties
- The purpose for sharing a user's personal information with third parties is indicated.
- Data are shared for analytics.
- Unclear whether data are shared for research and/or product improvement.
- Data are shared for third-party advertising and/or marketing.
3.3: Data Not Shared With Third Parties
- Unclear whether there are specific categories of information that are not shared with third parties.
3.4: Data Sold to Third Parties
- Data are sold or rented to third parties.
3.5: Third-Party Data Acquisition
- Personal information from users is acquired from third parties.
3.6: Third-Party Links
- Links to third-party external websites are not age-appropriate.
3.7: Third-Party Data Access
- Unclear whether third parties are authorized to access a user's information.
3.8: Third-Party Data Collection
- Unclear whether personal information of users is collected by a third party.
3.9: Third-Party Data Misuse
- Unclear whether personal information can be deleted from a third party if found to be misused.
3.10: Third-Party Service Providers
- Data are shared with third-party service providers.
- The roles of third-party service providers are indicated.
3.11: Third-Party Affiliates
- The categories of third parties that receive personal information are indicated.
3.12: Third-Party Policies
- Links to privacy policies of third-party companies are not available.
3.13: Third-Party Data Combination
- Unclear whether data can be combined with data from third-party sources.
- Unclear whether data shared with third parties can be combined by third parties for their own purposes.
3.14: Third-Party Authentication
- Social or federated login is supported.
- Personal information from social or federated login providers is collected.
- Personal Information is shared with social or federated login providers.
3.15: De-identified or Anonymized Data
- Unclear whether user information is shared in an anonymous or deidentified format.
- Unclear whether the vendor describes their deidentification process of user information.
3.16: Third-Party Contractual Obligations
- Unclear whether contractual limits are placed on third-party data use.
- Unclear whether contractual limits prohibit third parties from reidentifying deidentified information.
4: Respect for Context
4.1: Data Use
- Use of information is not limited to the purpose for which it was collected.
- The purpose for which data atr collected is indicated.
4.2: Data Combination
- Unclear whether this product treats combined information as personally identifiable information (PII).
4.3: Data Notice
- Unclear whether notice is provided if the context in which data are collected changes.
4.4: Data Changes
- Unclear whether consent is obtained if the practices in which data are collected change.
4.5: Policy Enforcement
- Accounts may be terminated if users engage in any prohibited activities.
5: Individual Control
5.1: User Content
- Users can create or upload content.
5.2: User Consent
- Opt-in consent is requested from users at the time personal information is collected.
5.3: Remedy Process
- A grievance or remedy mechanism is not available for users to file a complaint.
5.4: Data Settings
- Users can control their information through privacy settings.
5.5: Data Disclosure
- Unclear whether users can opt out from the disclosure or sale of their data to a third party.
- Unclear whether users can request to know what personal information has been shared with third parties for commercial purposes.
- Unclear whether notice is provided in the event the vendor receives a government or legal request for a user’s information.
5.6: Intellectual Property
- Users retain ownership of their data.
- A copyright license is claimed to data or content collected from a user.
- Any copyright license to a user's data is limited in scope or duration.
- Unclear whether notice is provided to users when their content is removed or disabled because of an alleged copyright violation.
6: Access and Accuracy
6.1: Data Access
- Processes to access and review user data are available.
- Unclear whether permissions, roles, or access controls are available to restrict who has access to data.
- Processes to review data are available for the school, parents, or students.
6.2: Data Integrity
- The vendor does not maintain the accuracy of data they collect.
6.3: Data Correction
- Processes to modify inaccurate data are available.
- Processes for the school, parents, or students to modify data are available.
- Unclear whether the time period for the vendor to modify inaccurate data is indicated.
6.4: Data Retention
- Unclear whether the product provides a data-retention policy.
- Unclear whether the retention time period of a user's data can be changed upon a valid inspection request.
6.5: Data Deletion
- Unclear whether this product deletes data when no longer necessary.
- A user's data are deleted upon account cancellation or termination.
- Unclear whether a user can delete all their data.
- Unclear whether the school, parents, or students can delete data.
- Unclear whether the time period for the vendor to delete data is indicated.
6.6: Data Portability
- Unclear whether this product provides users the ability to download their data.
- Unclear whether a user can assign an authorized account manager or legacy contact.
7: Data Transfer
7.1: Data Handling
- User information can be transferred to a third party.
- Unclear whether notice is provided to users if the vendor assigns its rights or delegates its duties to another company.
- Unclear whether users are notified if their information is transferred to a third party.
7.2: Transfer Request
- Unclear whether user information can be deleted prior to its transfer to a third party.
7.3: Onward Contractual Obligations
- Unclear whether third-party transfers are contractually required to use the same privacy practices.
8: Security
8.1: User Identity
- Unclear whether a user's identity is verified with additional personal information.
8.2: User Account
- Account creation is required.
- Unclear whether parental controls or managed accounts are available.
- Unclear whether two-factor account protection is available.
8.3: Third-Party Security
- Unclear whether third-party contractual security protections are required.
8.4: Data Confidentiality
- Industry best practices are used to protect data.
- Unclear whether this product limits employee or physical access to user information.
8.5: Data Transmission
- Unclear whether this product encrypts all data in transit.
8.6: Data Storage
- Unclear whether this product encrypts all data at rest.
- Unclear whether personal information of users is stored with a third party.
8.7: Data Breach
- Notice is provided in the event of a data breach.
8.8: Data Oversight
- Unclear whether this product performs data-privacy and security-compliance audits.
9: Responsible Use
9.1: Social Interactions
- Unclear whether this product supports interactions between trusted users and/or students.
- Users can interact with untrusted users, including strangers and/or adults.
- Profile information is shared for social interactions.
9.2: Data Visibility
- Personal information is displayed publicly.
- Unclear whether this product allows users to control how their data are displayed.
9.3: Monitor and Review
- User-created content is reviewed, screened, or monitored by the vendor.
- User-created content is not filtered for personal information before being made publicly visible.
- Unclear whether social interactions between users are moderated.
- Unclear whether social interactions of users are logged.
9.4: Report Content
- Users can filter or block inappropriate content.
- Users can report abuse or cyberbullying.
9.5: Internet Safety
- Unclear whether the vendor provides links to tools or processes that support safe and appropriate social interactions.
10: Advertising
10.1: Vendor Communications
- A user can receive service- or administrative-related communications from the vendor.
10.2: Traditional Advertising
- Unclear whether this product displays traditional or contextual advertisements.
10.3: Behavioral Advertising
- Behavioral or targeted advertising is displayed.
10.4: Ad Tracking
- Data are collected by third-party advertising or tracking services.
- Data are used to track and target advertisements on other third-party websites or services.
- Data profiles are created and used for data enhancement, and/or targeted advertisements.
10.5: Filtered Advertising
- Children may receive inappropriate advertisements.
10.6: Marketing Communications
- The vendor can send marketing messages.
- The vendor does provide promotional sweepstakes, contests, or surveys.
10.7: Unsubscribe
- Users can opt out of traditional, contextual, or behavioral advertising.
- Users can opt out or unsubscribe from marketing communications.
10.8: Do Not Track
- Vendor does not respond to Do Not Track or other opt-out mechanisms.
- Unclear whether the vendor provides a method for users to opt-out from third-party tracking.
11: Compliance
11.1: Children Under 13
- Vendor does not have actual knowledge that personal information from users under 13 years of age is collected.
- Unclear whether children's privacy is applicable.
- Unclear whether this product restricts account creation for users under 13 years of age.
- Unclear whether this product restricts in-app purchases for users under 13 years of age.
- Unclear whether the vendor participates in an FTC-approved COPPA safe harbor program.
11.2: Students in K–12
- Unclear whether this product is primarily used by, designed for, and marketed toward students in grades preK–12.
- Unclear whether the product creates education records.
- Unclear whether this product provides notification of a contract or additional rights.
- Unclear whether this product designates the vendor as a school official.
11.3: Parental Consent
- Unclear whether this product requires parental consent.
- Unclear whether this product limits parental consent with respect to third parties.
- Unclear whether this product allows parents to withdraw consent for the further collection of their child's information.
- Children's personal information is deleted if collected without parental consent.
- Unclear whether this product provides parental consent notice and method for submission.
- Unclear whether the vendor can use collected information to support the “internal operations” of the product.
- Unclear whether this product indicates COPPA parental consent exceptions.
- Unclear whether the vendor indicates FERPA parental consent exceptions.
- Unclear whether this product discloses directory information.
- Unclear whether this product transfers parental consent obligations to the school or district.
11.4: Legal Requirements
- The legal jurisdiction that applies to the laws governing any dispute is indicated.
- Unclear whether a user is required to waive the right to a jury trial, or settle any disputes by arbitration.
- Unclear whether a user is required to waive the right to join a class action lawsuit.
- A vendor will disclose personal information to law enforcement.
11.5: Certification
- Unclear whether the vendor has signed a privacy pledge or received a privacy certification.
11.6: International Laws
- Unclear whether a user's data are subject to International data transfer or jurisdiction laws, such as the GDPR.
- The vendor has indicated it is a Data Controller or Data Processor.