IT Policies and Filtering

Media and technology are at the very center of all our lives today — especially our children’s. The media content they consume and create has a profound impact on their social, emotional, cognitive, and physical development. Now more than ever, they need a trusted guide to help them navigate a world where change is the only constant. -Common Sense Media

Web Filtering

Prosser School District has two levels of Internet traffic filtering. First, we have an in-house appliance that filters Internet traffic, prevents intrusion and detects possible threats to our network. Second, we use a cloud-based service to block traffic to and from websites deemed harmful or inappropriate for students. Our Internet filters apply to school-issued Chromebooks and student Office 365 accounts both on and off school premises.

Law: The Children’s Internet Protection Act is a federal law that imposes restrictions on any school or library receiving funding for Internet access. Since Prosser School District receives this funding, we are required to provide filtering in an attempt to limit student access to inappropriate/harmful content online.

Board Policy: The School Board has adopted Procedure 2022 which acknowledges the Children’s Internet Protection Act and confirms the Board’s commitment to protecting access to inappropriate content.

Examples of Blocked Website Categories: Adult / Mature Content, Child Pornography, Dating, Gambling, Hacking, Illegal Drugs, Malicious Outbound, Botnets, Nudity Peer-to-Peer (P2P), Phishing, Pornography, Potentially Unwanted Software, Proxy Avoidance, Scam , SPAM , Spyware, Malware Sources , Suspicious, Unknown, Unmoderated Forums , Violence, Hate, Racism

Exceptions

Category filtering is not an exact science. There may be websites with educational value that are blocked categorically. To provide access to those web sites, PSD Staff can submit requests to whitelist specific URLs. There are also websites in categories that are open that might not be appropriate. These sites can be blacklisted so they are not available to students. PSD staff members or students can make filter requests using the ticketing system.

Google SafeSearch

PSD requires Google SafeSearch on all student accounts. SafeSearch filters the results that are returned from a Google search. Students may receive fewer search results due to SafeSearch being turned on. PSD does not control the results that SafeSearch returns. SafeSearch isn’t 100% accurate, but it helps avoid search results containing explicit content.