Hey all, we're the IT team at a primary school and we supply iPads to our students. The challenge is that these devices are used off-campus, and we need to meet two main criteria: 1. We need web filtering that works no matter where the students are (home, mobile hotspots, etc.). 2. We want to block internet access from 10 PM to 6 AM daily. We have a Sophos firewall on-site and use AppTec360 for mobile device management, but unfortunately, we can't implement time-based restrictions or filter off the school network with the MDM. We considered running a global HTTP proxy, but we're worried about performance and reliability. NextDNS seems cost-effective and straightforward, but it's limited in terms of scheduling and control. Any suggestions from those who have solved this problem would really help!
5 Answers
Netskope could be a good option for you as well, they have decent filtering capabilities.
You might want to check out Senso, which provides on-device filtering, allowing you to block Safari and any other browsers the students may use. Smoothwall could also work for you; they offer something similar.
Smoothwall is actually what we ended up using. The last Sophos product we tried didn't meet our UK safeguarding requirements. After some back and forth with their support, we switched to Smoothwall and Senso, which has worked a lot better for us in managing off-campus access.
Running a global proxy might not affect performance much, especially if you block sites like YouTube and Netflix. However, you should really think about privacy concerns here. It's important to consult a lawyer or a data protection expert to avoid any potential legal issues. You'll want a clear standard procedure detailing what gets blocked and how exemption requests are handled. Just remember, running a school filtering service comes with responsibilities, and you want to tread carefully with what data you monitor.
Have you thought about reaching out on r/k12sysadmin? There might be more school IT admins who have tackled similar challenges over there.
Does Microsoft Defender offer any content control features for web filtering? That might be worth checking out.
Totally agree! The Smoothwall setup is solid for filtering and offers good support for monitoring. It might help smooth over any parental concerns too.