Securly
 |
 | |
Type of site | Web filtering for schools |
|---|---|
| Owner | Golden Gate Capital |
| Founder(s) | Vinay Mahadik, Bharath Madhusudan, Nikita Chikate |
| Key people |
|
| URL | www |
| Launched | January 2013 |
Securly, Inc. is an educational software company based in San Jose, California and incorporated in Delaware. It develops and sells internet filters and other technologies which primary and secondary schools use to monitor students' web browsing, web searches, video watching, social media posts, emails, online documents, and drives.[1] It was founded in 2013.[2]
Reception
[edit]
Securly has been heavily criticized by many people for a lot of reasons, such as providing tools that let schools block many websites and invade students' privacy. As a result, videos have shown exploits to show how to get around Securly's filtering and monitoring, but almost all them have been patched and don't work at all anymore. In 2017, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported on Arrowhead High School's implementation of Securly, which received large backlash from parents and students. The software monitors activity of not only school-owned equipment, but also of students' own devices that are connected to the school's Wi-Fi. Points of contention included the risk of Securly being hacked, the potential sale of browsing and search history to insurance companies and advertisers, and general privacy concerns. Securly said that they "monitor students' internet searches and social media posts; flag them for references that suggest such things as drug use, cyberbullying or suicide; and share students' internet browsing histories with parents who want them."[3] Common Sense Media director Girard Kelly said events like the Cambridge Analytica scandal and the Equifax data breach show the need to protect students' data, arguing Securly does the opposite by normalizing a "surveillance state" where students have to give up their data without their consent.[4] In 2023, the parents of 2 California students filed a class action lawsuit against Securly, alleging that Securly collected students' private information without their permission and selling that information to third party vendors.[5]
Securly says that its service allows schools to almost achieve compliance with state and federal requirements such as the Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA).[6] Securly has claimed its services help prevent school shootings by blocking all violent content, but it has been largely criticized for not providing much data that supports that claim. It has also been largely criticized for the content that it deems violent.[7][8]
Awards
[edit]In 2020, Securly won the EdTech breakthrough award for use of Artificial Intelligence for Student Safety.[9]
References
[edit]- ^ Kolodny, Lora. "Securly raises $4 million to put guard rails on the internet for K-12 students". TechCrunch. Retrieved October 9, 2017.
- ^ "About Us - Securly". www.securly.com. Retrieved June 16, 2021.
- ^ Johnson, Annysa. "Students, the website you've visited at high school will now be seen by your parents". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved June 16, 2021.
- ^ Stolzoff, Simone. "Schools are using AI to track what students write on their computers". Quartz. Retrieved June 16, 2021.
- ^ "Class action lawsuit claims school security software company violated students' privacy". K-12 Dive. Retrieved February 28, 2024.
- ^ Brewster, Thomas. "This AI Startup Constantly Monitors Kids To Stop The Next School Shooting—And It Just Scored $16 Million Funding". Forbes. Retrieved July 1, 2021.
- ^ "Schools Spy on Kids to Prevent Shootings, But There's No Evidence It Works". Vice. Retrieved February 24, 2019.
- ^ Beckett, Lois (October 22, 2019). "Under digital surveillance: how American schools spy on millions of kids". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
- ^ Breakthrough, EdTech. "Securly Wins 2020 EdTech Breakthrough Award for Innovative Use of Artificial Intelligence for Student Safety". www.prweb.com. Retrieved May 13, 2025.