NYC Schools Track Student Bathroom Breaks with SmartPass, Sparking Privacy Concerns
More than 150 New York City public schools are now using a digital hall pass system called SmartPass to monitor student movement, including trips to the bathroom. The technology, implemented as early as fall 2025, tracks the duration of student absences from class and flags simultaneous bathroom requests, raising concerns about student privacy and surveillance.
How SmartPass Works
SmartPass requires students to sign out on an iPad located by the classroom door, initiating a timer for their trip. The system’s “hall monitor” feature allows teachers and staff to view all students with active passes, their destinations and their remaining time. According to the SmartPass website, this functionality aims to “disrupt bathroom meetups” and deter vaping and vandalism.
Concerns Over Student Privacy
The implementation of SmartPass has drawn criticism from students, parents, and civil liberties advocates who view it as an overreach of surveillance. Shokhjakhon Samiev, an 18-year-old high school senior and member of the New York Civil Liberties Union’s Teen Activist Project, stated, “It’s taken micromanaging students to a whole other level. We’re here to educate ourselves, not learn how to use the bathroom, right?”
Johanna Miller, director of education policy at NYCLU, expressed concerns that the system could lead to the exploitation of student data, stating, “It’s just creepy.” She warned that the data collected could be “inevitably turn a student into a product and turn a student’s behavior into a long-term record that is exploitable, hackable, and can be used against the kids.”
School and Company Responses
Education department officials have stated that SmartPass has been vetted to ensure student data protection. According to education department spokesperson Onika Richards, “NYC Public Schools takes student privacy concerns seriously, and all approved tools must meet established privacy and security standards.”
Spokespeople for SmartPass did not respond to questions regarding student privacy concerns. However, the Department of Education has confirmed that vendors are required to adhere to New York’s student-data rules, including encryption and limitations on data retention, as outlined in New York Education Law 2-d and the DOE’s privacy and security standards.
Financial Investment and Alternative Solutions
Public records indicate that the New York City Department of Education spent $368,000 on SmartPass contracts in 2025 and $120,000 in 2024. Critics argue that these funds could be better allocated to hiring more teachers or improving school facilities. Samiev noted, “Schools are spending thousands of dollars for this system, to buy iPads instead of hiring more teachers or [building] better facilities at our schools.”
Despite the implementation of SmartPass, some students and teachers report that traditional methods, such as raising hands for permission and using paper hall passes, remain common practice.
Loopholes and Future Considerations
Samiev too pointed out a potential loophole in the system, where students can sign out under a classmate’s name, leading to situations where students are unable to use the bathroom because another student has already signed out as them. He suggested that parents should have been given the option to opt out of the app.
The use of SmartPass is part of a broader debate over technology in New York City classrooms, including discussions around artificial intelligence. A petition signed by over 1,400 parents, educators, and students is calling for a moratorium on artificial intelligence in schools.
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