Is your technology team spending too much time wrestling with your K-12 school web filter? You may think finagling your filter to do what you need is unavoidable. But how many headaches could you alleviate if you had a better, more capable school web filter instead?
If you’re using a filter appliance or a free filtering solution, you’re missing out on essential features designed to make your job a whole lot easier. Securly Filter is a cloud-based web filter designed specifically for K-12 education. So much more than a content blocker, Securly Filter gives you the flexibility and save-the-day features you’ve always wished for in a web filter.
1. Introduce AI Safely & Responsibly
The future of AI in education is still taking shape, but the opportunities it presents are exciting. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could provide a safe way for students to get hands-on experience with AI, without worrying about misuse? That’s exactly what AI Chat for Securly Filter provides.
AI Chat lets you introduce students to AI and support the development of AI literacy skills, all while you maintain visibility and control. Unlike K-12 school web filters that simply block AI tools, Securly Filter gives you a tool to introduce AI safely and responsibly.
With AI Chat for Securly Filter, you get:
- A safe and controlled environment to teach AI use
- Complete oversight of AI interactions
- Built-in guardrails that ensure appropriate use
- Protection against unauthorized access
2. Make Better, Smarter Edtech Decisions
Do you wish you knew how many of the edtech tools you’re paying for are actually being used? Or if unauthorized and potentially unsafe apps are being used instead?
The edtech analytics dashboard available with Securly Filter transforms your edtech usage data into actionable insights. No more renewal decisions based on hunches or vendor promises—just clear, data-driven evidence to guide your technology decisions.
Get the insights you need to:
- Know which tools are delivering a return on academic investment
- Discover unauthorized “shadow IT” applications
- Make data-informed decisions about renewals and allocations
- Understand usage patterns across schools, grades, and teachers
3. Web Filtering That Keeps Up With Tech-Savvy Students
Once upon a time, you could set up a few blocked categories to keep students where they should be online. Those days are long gone, but that doesn’t mean you should have to spend hours each week chasing down new bypass attempts either.
Securly Filter uses AI-powered behavior analysis to allow you to see which students try to bypass your filter and engage in risky online behaviors. With this increased visibility, you can identify and address circumvention attempts and cybersecurity threats before they become widespread or a breach incident.
You can rest a little easier when your school web filter provides:
- AI-powered detection of web filter bypass attempts
- Insight into potential security issues
4. Give Teachers K-12 School Web Filter Control
“Can you unblock this site for me?”
This all-too-common request from teachers usually means more work for your IT team. But when you pair Securly Filter with Securly Classroom, you can delegate web access controls to teachers so they can create and manage their own block/allow lists.
This shared responsibility for filter controls is a win-win that makes things flow more smoothly for everyone involved. Teachers can plan and deliver their lessons without calling IT, yet you’re able to maintain the security oversight you need.
When you’re able to give your teachers filter control, you can:
- Eliminate the constant stream of unblock requests
- Let teachers manage temporary website access during lessons
- Track all temporary access changes automatically
- Keep district-wide security policies intact
5. Give Families Control of Student Devices at Home
Schools need new ways to increase school-family engagement. You can foster and deepen the connection between school and home with the Securly Home app for Securly Filter.
With the Home app, you can give families internet controls and device access that they may not otherwise have. Beyond letting families set limits on screen time and website access, the Home app gives families insight into students’ learning, creating more transparency between school and home. Many schools credit this shared responsibility for students’ online safety with strengthening their school-family partnerships.
With Securly Home, you can:
- Give parents real-time visibility into their children’s online activities
- Allow families to set screen time limits on school devices at home
- Provide families with insights into searches, sites visited, and videos watched
- Support greater transparency between school and home
Securly Filter: The School Web Filter That’s So Much More
District and school technology teams need more than just a web filter. They need an efficient and effective web filter that’s designed for the requirements of K-12 education—and, ideally, that makes their jobs a little easier. They’re finding it in Securly Filter.
Much more than a web filter, Securly Filter helps you:
- Safely and responsibly introduce AI in the classroom
- Identify and address filter circumvention and security risks
- Give families control and visibility of student devices at home
- Make data-driven edtech decisions and investments
…and so much more!
Curious to learn more about Securly Filter? Here are some helpful resources:
- See What Actual Customers Say: Read the G2 reviews of Securly Filter
- Watch a 2-minute Video: Learn how Chico Unified School District is building on web filtering to support students in crisis
- Read the Blog: Discover 7 ways to get more value from your school web filter
- Securly Filter Product Overview: Understand all of the helpful features you get with Securly Filter
Frequently Asked Questions About Securly Filter
How is Securly Filter different from other K-12 school web filters?
For starters, Securly Filter was the first cloud-based web filter developed for K-12 schools back in 2013. As Securly’s flagship product, it’s been continually innovated ever since to meet the evolving needs of K-12 technology teams. Not only does it provide more flexibility and features to address today’s educational technology challenges, but it serves as the central hub of Securly’s ecosystem of student safety and wellness technologies that are helping schools create safer, more supportive learning environments.
Read the case study to learn more.
Is generating data and reports easier in Securly Filter?
Pulling data and reports from other K-12 school web filters is like pulling teeth. But not Securly Filter. Its clean and user-friendly dashboard provides intuitive filtering capabilities, dynamic layouts, and customizable reports, making it easier than ever to investigate issues and reveal actionable insights from your web filtering data.
Can Securly Filter make YouTube access any easier?
The short answer is yes. Remember that Securly Filter was designed specifically to meet the changing needs of K-12 schools. Understanding that YouTube is a source of both distracting, even dangerous, content, as well as highly educational content, Securly Filter gives you granular control of YouTube settings. Say goodbye to one-size-fits-all block/allow decision; say hello to Google-style YouTube functionality on Windows devices, and with even more customizable options.
Does Securly Filter support iPads?
Yes, in fact, filtering on iPads is so much easier with Securly Filter, thanks to its patented SmartPAC technology specifically designed for iPad management in K-12 environments. Many filtering solutions that don’t play well with iPads, but not Securly Filter. It provides consistent filtering across school and home networks, zero-touch authentication for younger students, and comprehensive logging capabilities—all without the bandwidth and proxy issues common to other solutions.
