FPF Releases Report on the Adoption of Privacy Enhancing Technologies by State Education Agencies

The Future of Privacy Forum (FPF) released a landscape analysis of the adoption of Privacy Enhancing Technologies (PETs) by State Education Agencies (SEAs). As agencies face increasing pressure to leverage sensitive student and institutional data for analysis and research, PETs offer a unique potential solution as they are advanced technologies designed to protect data privacy while maintaining the utility of results yielded from analyses. 

FPF worked with AEM Corporation to conduct a landscape analysis, including an overview of current PETs adoption, current challenges, and considerations for enhancing data protection measures. The landscape analysis, first previewed in a late 2024 webinar and expert panel discussion, evaluated the organizational readiness and critical use cases for PETs within SEAs and the broader education sector, ultimately highlighting the need to raise awareness of what PETs are and what they are not, the range of available types of PETs, their potential use cases, and considerations for the effective adoption and sustainable implementation of these technologies. 

“Intentional PETs implementation can boost community trust, enhance data analysis, and effectively ensure critical privacy protections,” said Jim Siegl, FPF Senior Technologist for Youth & Education Privacy. “But as our landscape analysis highlights, despite the advances PETs offer to SEAs in utilizing the data they steward, a gap persists in applying these technologies and realizing their potential benefits.”

Key findings outlined in the report include:

• PETs are not one-size-fits-all solutions but are evolving tools aimed at enabling the sustainable utility of data without sacrificing confidentiality or security. 
• There is a significant gap in technical knowledge relating to PETs. 
• There is a lack of awareness of relevant use cases surrounding PETs among practitioners. 
• Successful PET implementation requires substantial investment in infrastructure, technical capabilities, and ongoing training. 
• Legal and regulatory requirements complicate PET adoption, with institutions often cautious about deployment due to a lack of clarity and formal guidance.

The report also outlines a series of recommendations to support PET adoption at scale, including establishing a shared vocabulary, creating trusted introductory resources, and curating relevant use cases to raise collective awareness about the capabilities and limitations of PETs. Additional recommendations include developing a PETs readiness model, focusing on core capabilities, and providing targeted technical assistance to support sustainable PET adoption and implementation. 

Recognizing the need for a deeper understanding of the potential and limitations of these technologies, FPF has actively contributed to shaping policymaking around PETs through discussion papers, reports, and stakeholder engagement. FPF’s PETs Repository, launched in November 2024, is a centralized, trusted, and up-to-date resource where individuals and organizations interested in these technologies can find practical and useful information.