Who is making allegations?
Although some colleges read this way, I would not say this is the norm among need aware colleges. Regardless, it’s their money, so they can identify which students they want to invest financial aid in however they want.
Again, Slate doesn’t insert anything into what admissions peeps see. Each school chooses what they want readers to see.
Incorporating student specific NPC info into Slate is not a new capability.
Students can avoid this situation by simply running NPCs anonymously or as guests.
It seems you have the perception that something nefarious is happening here, is that accurate?