Harris campaign text targeting Arizona college students triggers state Senate investigation

PHOENIX — A Harris campaign text message targeting college students at Arizona’s public universities triggered data-privacy concerns and a state Senate investigation over the weekend.On Sunday, students and others with ties to Arizona State University, the University of Arizona and Northern Arizona University received text messages notifying them of the voter-registration deadline, which is Monday.“As an Arizona State University student, you can register and vote in Arizona.Register to vote at your on or off campus housing address today,” one version of the text said.

It is legal in Arizona for college students to register to vote from their dorm address, as long as they’re not registered to vote elsewhere, even if they are technically out-of-state students.All three public universities told The Post student-directory data can be released through the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act, or FERPA, but students can opt to have their information “withheld.”An ASU spokesperson told The Post the law also permits political campaigns to obtain the information.“The contact information of enrolled students (including their cell phone numbers) is a matter of public record.

This is not ASU policy,” the spokesperson wrote in an email.“Under FERPA, it is considered “directory information,” along with other basic information like the student’s major, dates of attendance and enrollment status.

It is common for entities that want to advertise to ASU students to request this publicly available contact information — everything from apartment complexes, to credit cards, to political candidates.”“We receive these types of requests many times throughout the year and the requestor must pay for data they ask for,” NAU Associate Vice President for Communications Kimberly Ott told The Post.“Organizations can request directory information through the University of Arizona Office of Public Records.Under federal law, directory information is not con...