EPIC - EPIC Uncovers DOD Student Data Collection Procedures

The Department of Defense has released to EPIC documents on the "Joint Advertising and Market Research Studies" Recruiting Database. The database includes sensitive student information, including home address and grade point average. DOD obtains this information from high schools offering military aptitude tests, state DMVs, and commercial data brokers. The documents sought by EPIC shed light on how DOD collects, retains, uses, and safeguards student information within the database. The documents provided to EPIC also reveal that many parents demanded that DOD remove their children's records from the system. In 2005, EPIC, joined by more than 100 organizations, urged former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld to end the database because it collected unnecessary information, did not permit individuals to opt-out, and was housed at a private-sector direct marketing company. The agency now permits individuals to opt-out. For more information, see EPIC: Student Privacy and EPIC: DOD Recruiting Database.