From STAFF REPORTS

HOOVER—ProctorU recently joined Microsoft, Kahn Academy, Google, Follett and Apple in signing the Student Privacy Pledge which safeguards student privacy regarding the collection, maintenance and use of student personal information.

ProctorU is headquartered in Hoover and provides live proctoring services to colleges, universities and corporations, helping ensure the academic integrity of not only institutions, but also that of their test-takers.

“We take protecting the privacy of students very seriously, the information we collect from students—such as name, address and profile picture—is collected over a secure connection and only shared back with the schools,” ProctorU President Don Kassner wrote in a March 30 news release.

The Student Privacy Pledge was developed by the Future of Privacy Forum and Software and Information Industry Association along with guidance from the school service providers, educator organizations and other stakeholders.

The Student Privacy Pledge states that school service providers are accountable to not sell student information, not behaviorally target advertising, use data for authorized education purposes only, not change privacy policies without notice and choice, enforce strict limits on data retention, provide comprehensive security standards, be transparent about collection and use of data and support parental access to, and correction of errors in, their children’s information.

“We signed this pledge because student privacy is a priority,” Kassner wrote. “In order to make certain that student information is protected, proper training is ensured in the usage of data gathered during the proctoring or identity verification process.”

ProctorU has more than 400 employees at four office locations in three states, with nearly 200 employees at the Hoover location. The company has administered 1 million exams for test-takers in 75 countries and works with more than 500 institutions.