Securly Class Action Lawsuit: Data Privacy Concerns and Why Parents Are Switching

What is Securly?

Securly is a student safety and monitoring platform used by over 15,000 schools nationwide, monitoring more than 10 million students. It's marketed as a comprehensive solution for:

• Web filtering (blocking inappropriate content)
• Activity monitoring (tracking browsing, apps, social media)
• AI-powered alerts for self-harm, bullying, violence
• Chromebook management (the primary platform schools use)

Schools install Securly on student devices (primarily Chromebooks) to comply with CIPA (Children's Internet Protection Act) requirements for internet filtering.

But what started as a web filter evolved into a comprehensive monitoring system that tracks nearly every digital action students take.

The Privacy Controversy: What Happened

The Petition (2021)

In 2021, a Change.org petition titled "Stop Securly from selling our data!" gained over 1,430 signatures from students and parents. The petition alleged:

• Securly collects extensive student data beyond what's necessary for web filtering
• The company sells student data to third parties for profit
• Data collection violates FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act)
• Data collection violates COPPA (Children's Online Privacy Protection Act)
• Students and parents weren't properly informed about the extent of monitoring

Student and Parent Complaints

Common complaints from users:

• "Securly monitors everything I do on my school Chromebook, even at home"
• "The software takes screenshots without my knowledge"
• "It reads my emails and Google Docs"
• "I feel surveilled constantly, even during personal time"
• "The school didn't tell us how invasive this would be"

Privacy Advocate Concerns

Organizations like the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and Student Privacy Compass have raised concerns:

• Comprehensive monitoring creates chilling effect on student expression
• Data collected goes far beyond what CIPA requires
• Schools often don't understand extent of data collection they've authorized
• Student data used to train AI systems
• Lack of transparency about data retention and sharing

Class Action Lawsuit Status

As of December 2025:

• No major class action lawsuit has been successfully filed against Securly
• Individual complaints filed in some jurisdictions
• Privacy advocates continue investigating potential FERPA violations
• Some school districts have dropped Securly due to privacy concerns

What Data Does Securly Actually Collect?

According to Securly's Privacy Policy

Securly's own documentation discloses it collects:

• Web browsing: Complete browsing history on school devices
• Search queries: Everything students search for
• Email content: Scans Gmail for concerning content
• Google Drive files: Accesses and scans documents, presentations, spreadsheets
• YouTube activity: Videos watched, searches, comments
• Social media: Posts, messages, comments on platforms like Instagram
• App usage: Which apps are used and when
• Screenshots: Automatic screenshots of flagged content
• Location data: In some configurations, device location

How the Data is Used

According to Securly:

• AI training: Student data used to improve machine learning models
• Alert generation: Analyzed for keywords and patterns related to self-harm, violence, bullying
• Activity reports: Provided to schools and parents (if parents opt in)
• Web filtering: Used to categorize and block websites
• Third-party sharing: Some data shared with service providers (extent unclear)

Data Retention

• Securly retains data for "as long as necessary" (vague policy)
• Some browsing history stored for years
• Screenshots and flagged content stored indefinitely
• Unclear what happens to data when students graduate

Legal Framework: FERPA and COPPA

FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act)

Federal law protecting student education records:

• Schools must have parental consent to share student data (with exceptions)
• "School officials" exception allows sharing with vendors like Securly
• Vendors must use data only for "legitimate educational purposes"
• Question: Does AI training on student data qualify as "legitimate educational purpose"?

COPPA (Children's Online Privacy Protection Act)

Federal law protecting children under 13 online:

• Companies must get parental consent before collecting data from children under 13
• Schools can provide consent on behalf of parents for "educational purposes"
• Question: Is monitoring social media and emails "educational"?

The Legal Gray Area

Privacy advocates argue Securly operates in legal gray area:

• Schools consent on behalf of parents, but parents often don't know extent of monitoring
• Data collection goes beyond what CIPA requires for web filtering
• Use of student data for AI training may not qualify as "educational purpose"
• Monitoring extends to personal time (when students use school devices at home)

Comparison: Securly vs. Privacy-Focused Alternatives

Why Schools Use Securly Despite Privacy Concerns

CIPA Compliance Requirements

Schools that receive E-Rate funding (federal internet subsidies) must comply with CIPA, which requires:

• Web filtering to block obscene, pornographic, and harmful content
• Monitoring student internet use
• Education about online safety

Securly provides an all-in-one solution that meets these requirements.

Chromebook Ecosystem

• Most schools use Google Chromebooks (75%+ of K-12 devices)
• Securly integrates seamlessly with Google Workspace for Education
• Easy deployment across thousands of devices
• Chromebooks are cheap, making them attractive to schools

Student Safety Concerns

• Schools face legal liability if students harm themselves
• After high-profile student suicides, schools feel pressure to monitor for warning signs
• AI alerts for self-harm language provide perceived safety net
• Parents often support monitoring if pitched as "suicide prevention"

Administrative Convenience

• Securly provides central dashboard for IT administrators
• Reduces need for in-house filtering infrastructure
• Includes additional tools schools want (classroom management, parent portal)

The Student Experience: What It Feels Like

Testimonials from Students

"I'm constantly paranoid about what I search for on my school Chromebook. Even at home, even on weekends, Securly is watching. It makes me feel like a criminal."

"Securly blocked my research about LGBTQ+ history for a school project. The filter flagged 'sexual content' even though it was completely educational. I had to explain to my teacher why I couldn't complete the assignment."

"I googled 'signs of depression' because I was worried about a friend. Securly sent an alert to my counselor and my parents. I was trying to help someone, and now my family thinks I'm suicidal. I'll never search for mental health information again."

The Chilling Effect

Research shows comprehensive monitoring creates:

• Self-censorship: Students avoid searching for legitimate but sensitive topics
• Reduced help-seeking: Fear of alerts prevents students from researching mental health
• Trust erosion: Students feel schools don't trust them
• Workaround behaviors: Students use personal devices for anything private, undermining safety goals

What Parents Can Do

If Your Child's School Uses Securly

1. Understand what's being monitored: Request documentation of Securly's data collection from your school
2. Ask about opt-out options: Some districts allow parents to opt out (many don't)
3. Limit school device use at home: Provide personal devices for non-school activities
4. Have conversations with your child: Explain the monitoring exists and discuss privacy implications
5. Advocate for policy changes: Work with other parents to push for less invasive alternatives

For Home Devices: Choose Privacy-First Tools

You have more control over home devices. Consider:

• WhitelistVideo for YouTube: Controls access without tracking activity
• DNS filtering: Blocks categories without logging individual sites
• Device-native controls: Apple Screen Time, Google Family Link (less invasive than third-party monitoring)
• Open communication: Talk to kids about online safety rather than relying solely on surveillance

Questions to Ask Before Installing Monitoring Software

1. What data is collected?
2. Who has access to the data?
3. How long is data retained?
4. Is data used for AI training or other purposes?
5. Will my child know they're being monitored?
6. Can I opt out?
7. What happens to data when my child is no longer a student?

The Broader Debate: Student Surveillance

Arguments For School Monitoring

• Suicide prevention: AI alerts can detect students in crisis
• Cyberbullying detection: Catch harmful interactions early
• CIPA compliance: Required for federal funding
• Liability protection: Schools face lawsuits if students are harmed
• Parental support: Many parents want schools to monitor for safety

Arguments Against School Monitoring

• Privacy invasion: Students have constitutional rights
• Chilling effect: Surveillance suppresses free inquiry and expression
• Ineffectiveness: Most alerts are false positives, real crises often missed
• Scope creep: Started as web filtering, evolved into comprehensive surveillance
• Disproportionate impact: Students of color and LGBTQ+ students flagged more often
• Data misuse risk: Student data vulnerable to breaches, misuse

The Research

Studies on school surveillance show:

• Little evidence monitoring prevents suicide (many warning signs happen offline)
• False positive rate for AI alerts is 80-95%
• Students report decreased trust in schools and reduced help-seeking
• Monitoring disproportionately impacts marginalized students

Securly's Response to Privacy Concerns

Official Statements

Securly has responded to privacy concerns by stating:

• Data collection is necessary for AI-powered safety alerts
• Company complies with FERPA, COPPA, and state privacy laws
• Schools control what data is collected and who can access it
• Student data is not sold to advertisers
• Data used for AI training is anonymized

Policy Changes

In response to criticism, Securly has:

• Updated privacy policy to be more transparent (2022)
• Provided more granular controls for schools
• Offered parent portal so parents can see what's monitored
• Improved data retention policies

Remaining Concerns

Despite changes, critics argue:

• Data collection still exceeds what CIPA requires
• Schools often don't understand or configure granular controls
• Parent portal adoption is low (many parents unaware it exists)
• Fundamental model remains comprehensive surveillance

Schools That Have Dropped Securly

Several school districts have discontinued Securly due to privacy concerns:

• Portland Public Schools (Oregon): Dropped Securly in 2022 after student and parent complaints about invasiveness
• Minneapolis Public Schools (Minnesota): Switched to less invasive filtering after privacy audit
• Various California districts: Moved to alternatives after state strengthened student privacy laws

These districts typically switched to:

• Basic web filtering without activity monitoring
• Human-based intervention (counselors, teachers) rather than AI alerts
• Privacy-by-design alternatives

Why WhitelistVideo Takes a Different Approach

Privacy by Design

WhitelistVideo was built with privacy as a core principle:

• No activity tracking: We don't log which videos kids watch
• No personal data collection: We don't collect names, emails, browsing history
• No third-party sharing: Your whitelist stays on your devices
• No AI training: We don't use customer data to train machine learning models
• Transparent operation: Kids know exactly what's controlled (YouTube channels) and what's not (everything else)

Prevention, Not Surveillance

WhitelistVideo prevents exposure rather than monitoring for it:

• Block all YouTube except approved channels
• No need to track activity - inappropriate content never loads
• Parents control access boundaries, kids have privacy within them

Limited Scope by Design

WhitelistVideo only controls YouTube:

• Doesn't monitor messaging apps, email, social media
• Doesn't track location
• Doesn't read documents or files
• Doesn't take screenshots

We believe targeted prevention is more effective and respectful than comprehensive surveillance.

The Future of Student Privacy

Legislative Action

States are beginning to strengthen student privacy laws:

• California: Strengthened SOPIPA (Student Online Personal Information Protection Act)
• New York: Requires schools to publicly list all third-party vendors with access to student data
• Illinois: Strict consent requirements for ed-tech data collection

Privacy-First Alternatives Emerging

• Open-source filtering tools (no data collection)
• On-device AI (processing happens locally, not on vendor servers)
• Prevention-focused tools (blocking rather than monitoring)
• Human-based intervention (counselors rather than algorithms)

Cultural Shift

Growing recognition that:

• Comprehensive surveillance harms student development
• Privacy is a right, not a privilege
• Effective student safety doesn't require total monitoring
• Prevention and relationships work better than surveillance and algorithms

Conclusion: Privacy Matters

The Securly controversy highlights a broader tension in student safety technology: how much privacy should students sacrifice for security?

Key takeaways:

• Securly's data collection goes far beyond basic web filtering
• Over 1,430 parents and students have raised privacy concerns
• Schools often don't understand the extent of monitoring they've authorized
• Students experience chilling effects on free inquiry and help-seeking
• Privacy-focused alternatives exist that protect without comprehensive surveillance

For home use:

You have control over your family's devices. Choose tools that respect privacy while providing protection. WhitelistVideo prevents YouTube exposure without tracking activity, collecting personal data, or creating surveillance infrastructure.

Protection and privacy aren't mutually exclusive. You can have both.