The National Center for E-Learning in Saudi Arabia announced the launch of a comprehensive and updated policy aimed at protecting the privacy of learners' data in digital learning environments. This step aims to regulate the collection and processing of data across all educational platforms, establishing clear boundaries to prevent the commercial exploitation of this data, while imposing strict restrictions on the use of artificial intelligence to ensure a safe and reliable learning environment.
The context of digital transformation and data protection
This new policy aligns with the Kingdom's rapid technological advancements, driven by the goals of Vision 2030, which focuses on digital transformation across all sectors, particularly education. With the increasing reliance on digital platforms, the need for a regulatory framework that complies with the Kingdom's personal data protection system has become paramount, ensuring that educational institutions do not become data collection sites for non-educational purposes.
The provisions of this policy apply mandatorily to all governmental, private, and non-profit entities that conduct e-learning and training activities, and include all technical service providers who handle student and trainee data.
Banning the marketing and training of artificial intelligence models
The policy explicitly prohibits the use of student data for any marketing or advertising purposes, or its integration with external sources for consumer behavior analysis. In a significant regulatory precedent, the use of student data to develop or train commercial or general artificial intelligence models outside the educational system is prohibited without explicit and specific consent in accordance with regulations.
The policy also set a crucial condition of "mandatory human intervention"; automated systems are prohibited from making fateful decisions such as failing, passing, or denying educational opportunities without responsible human review, to ensure fairness and avoid algorithmic errors.
Expected impact: Enhanced trust and transparency
This policy is expected to have a broad positive impact both locally and regionally. Locally, it will contribute to strengthening families' and parents' trust in e-learning platforms, encouraging greater engagement in digital learning without privacy concerns. Regionally, this step positions the Kingdom among the leading countries that have developed legislation to regulate the relationship between artificial intelligence and human rights, potentially prompting neighboring countries to adopt similar standards.
Protecting minors and the rights of learners
The policy paid particular attention to the privacy of children and minors, requiring parental consent before any action and prohibiting any non-educational behavioral tracking. It also granted learners broad rights, including access to their data, the right to correct it, or to request its deletion once the educational purpose is fulfilled, as well as the right to object to behavioral analyses.
The policy requires service providers to localize and store data within the Kingdom in accordance with regulations, while applying the highest cybersecurity standards. Compliance with these standards is a prerequisite for obtaining e-learning licenses, and any breach of these provisions will affect quality assessments and expose the provider to legal accountability.
