Instructions for Teachers
Setup: Print this document and cut out the scenario cards. Each set includes 12 different privacy scenarios.
Group Activity: Divide students into small groups of 3-4. Give each group 2-3 scenario cards to analyze.
Discussion Framework: Each card includes discussion questions to guide student thinking. Groups should:
- Read the scenario carefully together
- Discuss each question as a group
- Identify the privacy risks and implications
- Agree on recommended actions
- Prepare to share their analysis with the class (1-2 minutes per scenario)
Time Allocation: Allow approximately 10-12 minutes for group discussion, then 5-8 minutes for sharing with the whole class.
1
Free Photo Editing App
You discover a popular photo editing app that's completely free and has amazing filters your friends are using. When you download it, the app requests access to your entire photo library, contacts list, and location data - even though it only seems to need photos to function properly. The app has 5-star reviews and millions of downloads.
Discuss:
- What data is the app collecting?
- Why might it request more permissions than needed?
- What are the risks of granting these permissions?
- What questions should you ask before deciding?
- What would be the safest course of action?
- Are there alternative solutions?
2
Viral Social Media Quiz
A fun personality quiz is going viral on social media: "Which Disney Character Are You?" To see your results, you need to grant the quiz app access to your profile information, friend list, and the ability to post on your behalf. Your friends are all sharing their results and encouraging you to take it. The quiz was created by a third-party company you've never heard of.
Discuss:
- What information is being shared with the quiz company?
- How might this data be used or sold?
- What are the immediate and long-term risks?
- Why do companies create these "free" quizzes?
- How should you respond to friend pressure?
- What's a safer alternative if you want to participate?
3
Smart Home Devices
Your family just purchased a smart speaker with a voice assistant (like Alexa or Google Home) that's always listening for voice commands. Your parents want to put it in the living room where the family spends most of their time. The device can answer questions, play music, control lights, and even make purchases with voice commands.
Discuss:
- What privacy concerns exist with "always listening" devices?
- Where should the device be placed (and NOT placed) in your home?
- What conversations might you want to keep private from AI?
- What family rules should you establish?
- How can you balance convenience and privacy?
- What settings should your family review?
4
Online Gaming Stranger
While playing your favorite online multiplayer game, another player starts chatting with you. They seem friendly and claim to be the same age as you. After playing together for a few days, they ask for your personal information so they can "send you free game credits" or "add you on social media." They want your full name, email address, and what city you live in.
Discuss:
- What are the warning signs in this scenario?
- Why would someone need personal info to send game credits?
- What are the potential dangers of sharing this information?
- How should you respond to this request?
- Who should you tell about this situation?
- What are safe ways to interact with online gaming friends?
5
School AI Learning Platform
Your school introduces new AI-powered learning software that tracks everything you do: how long you spend on each problem, which questions you get wrong, your typing speed, how many times you check your answers, and even uses your webcam to monitor if you're paying attention. The software creates detailed reports that predict your test scores and identifies students who might be struggling.
Discuss:
- What privacy considerations exist with this technology?
- What are the benefits of detailed learning analytics?
- What are the potential problems or concerns?
- Should students have any say in this type of monitoring?
- What questions should you ask your teacher or school?
- How could this data be misused?
6
Location Sharing with Friends
Your friend group uses a social media app that lets you share your location continuously so everyone can see where each person is at all times. Several of your friends have this feature turned on 24/7 and encourage you to enable it too, saying it helps them meet up and makes sure everyone is safe. Your parents have expressed concerns about constant location tracking.
Discuss:
- What are the benefits of location sharing with friends?
- What are the privacy and safety risks?
- Who else might be able to access this location data?
- How might constant tracking affect your freedom and privacy?
- What compromise could balance connection and privacy?
- How should you handle peer pressure around this issue?
7
AI Homework Helper
You find an AI-powered homework help website that can answer almost any question instantly. To use it, you need to create an account and the website stores all your questions and searches. The privacy policy (which is very long and confusing) mentions that they may share "anonymized data" with educational partners and use your questions to improve their AI system. Some of your searches include personal information about topics you're studying.
Discuss:
- What information is being collected about your studying?
- What does "anonymized data" mean and is it truly private?
- What could others learn about you from your search history?
- Are there privacy concerns with educational AI tools?
- What should you consider before using this service?
- How can you protect privacy while getting academic help?
8
Fitness App and Health Data
You download a popular fitness tracking app to help you get more active. The app asks to connect to your phone's health data, track your location throughout the day, access your contacts to "encourage friends to join," and wants permission to share your progress on social media. The app's privacy policy states they share data with "advertising partners" and "health research companies."
Discuss:
- Why is health data particularly sensitive?
- Who are these "advertising and research partners"?
- How might your health data be used in the future?
- Could this information affect insurance or employment someday?
- What permissions are necessary vs. excessive?
- What privacy protections should health apps have?
9
Public Wi-Fi at the Mall
You're at the mall with friends and want to check your social media. You connect to the free public Wi-Fi network called "Mall_Free_WiFi" without a password. While connected, you log into several accounts, check your email, and do some online shopping. You notice the connection seems slower than usual and some websites look slightly different than normal.
Discuss:
- What are the risks of using public Wi-Fi networks?
- What information could be intercepted on public networks?
- Why might websites look different? What could this mean?
- What activities should you avoid on public Wi-Fi?
- How can you protect yourself when using public internet?
- When is it safe to use public Wi-Fi?
10
AI-Generated Profile Photo
A new app uses AI to create "perfect" profile photos from your selfies. You upload 10-20 photos of yourself, and the AI generates professional-looking images you can use online. The app's terms say they retain the rights to all photos you upload and may use them to train future AI models. They also state that your AI-generated images might be used in their marketing materials.
Discuss:
- What are you giving up when you upload your photos?
- How might your images be used by the company or AI?
- Could your likeness appear in unexpected places?
- What are the long-term implications of sharing facial data?
- Are the convenience and results worth the privacy trade-off?
- What alternatives exist for getting good profile photos?
11
Deepfake Concerns
You discover that someone has created a fake video of you using AI deepfake technology, making it look like you said things you never actually said. The video is being shared on social media and some people think it's real. You're not sure how they got enough footage of you to create this, but you have posted many videos and photos online over the years.
Discuss:
- How could sharing videos/photos online lead to this situation?
- What immediate steps should be taken?
- Who should be informed (parents, school, platform)?
- How can you protect yourself from deepfakes?
- Should you limit what you share online to prevent this?
- What laws or policies should exist around deepfakes?
12
Smart Glasses in School
A student in your class gets new smart glasses that have a built-in camera and can record video or take photos with a voice command or subtle gesture. The glasses look like regular eyewear, so it's impossible to tell when they're recording. The student wears them all day, including in the locker room, cafeteria, and during private conversations. They claim they're not recording, but there's no way to verify this.
Discuss:
- What privacy concerns does this technology create?
- How does this affect your comfort and behavior at school?
- Should there be rules about wearable recording devices?
- Where should recording technology definitely be prohibited?
- How can schools balance innovation with privacy?
- What would you want your school's policy to be?