Cyber Security – Educators & Families
WE WORK HARD TO KEEP YOUR DATA SAFE!
Cyber Safety Policy
We’ve gone to extreme measures in the design of our secure ePortfolio software to ensure your safety and privacy of your child’s information.
Educa is an encrypted, password protected site that is closely monitored by online security specialists.
You can rest easy knowing we have taken every precaution possible to make sure your information is safe, private and secure and that we will never share your information with third parties.
We ask child care centers to restrict access to child information to those staff who have a “need to know” and we use a secure encrypted connection to protect the transmission of information over the internet.
We require any Parents who will have access to Child Information to register a separate account with us and agree to our Terms and Conditions.
We do not collect personal information about your child.
The child care center which your child attends is responsible for collecting personal information about children and selecting, uploading, accessing and using that information through the Application.
Only you, the primary caregiver can grant access to your child’s profile.
Any content related to your child is owned by you. You have the right to request access to any of the personal information we hold on behalf of the child care service about you or your child. You also have the right to request that any of your personal information or your child’s personal information be corrected or removed. If you would like to exercise these rights, please contact your child care provider directly.
Read our full privacy policy here →
How are permissions managed to restrict content access?
The need to make child information private is one the main reasons early learning services choose Educa. The software has an elaborate range of settings to manage child privacy. In the default setting, only the service administrator, the child’s teacher and the parent can see a child’s record. A teacher can give access to peer teachers as needed, and can also withdraw that access. Similarly, parents can invite other family members if they so choose, and similarly can also cancel that access.
Where is child data stored?
Educa uses a distributed server architecture, where for New Zealand, Australia and North America, the records are held locally on servers in the country of domicile.
Privacy and Security Laws
Educa has customers in several countries. We run our service in accordance with the applicable laws in the country in which an early learning service is domiciled. This means we handle personal information in accordance with the requirements of the Privacy Act 2020 (New Zealand), the Privacy Act 1988 (Australia), the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act, SC 2000, c5 (Canada), the Personal Information Protection Act (Alberta, Canada), the Personal Information Protection Act (British Columbia, Canada), all applicable United States federal and state privacy laws. For more on our privacy policy click here.
How secure is the data stored by Educa?
Educa is an encrypted and password protected site, with additional layers of data protection provided by our server host, Amazon Web Services. The checking and updating security settings is a constant part of our software maintenance routine.
Secure ePortfolio Software For Child Care Services:
We take your privacy seriously. Any personal information we hold on behalf of child care services is protected by all the security safeguards necessary to ensure you are not at risk.
We only collect the information you provide about yourself if you use our application or visit our public website.
We use this information to have a better understanding of the way people use our site and to tailor it to be more relevant and useful to your particular needs.
You have the right to request access to any of the personal information we hold about you.
You also have right to request that any of your personal information be corrected. If you would like to exercise these rights, please contact your manager at the child care center and ask him or her to liaise with us regarding access to or correction of your information.
New Reporting Requirements
In 2018, new laws came into effect in Australia, which updates their Privacy Act to include mandatory data breach notifications (Privacy Amendment (Notifiable Data Breaches) Act 2017). This means companies who are operating within Australia are now required to notify the Privacy Commissioner if they become aware that any personal data held by them has been accessed by unauthorised parties. Read more here
If we ever suffer a data breach, we are committed to notifying all affected users as well as the relevant privacy commissioners in the countries of users affected, where such a system exists. Similar requirements exist in several states and provinces in North America.
Our terms and conditions reference these changes.
General Advice for Everyone
The first step to being safe online is making sure you have a clear understanding about why it’s important in the first place, and what you can do to protect yourself.
Most of the time, using the internet is perfectly safe if you act responsibly.
Especially when you’re using a private, encrypted site like Educa. Unfortunately, there are plenty of places online where you are not protected.
It’s your choice what you share, but you should always act in your child’s best interests.
The fact is that young people are increasingly exposed to an open and collaborative online culture. Digital media is a huge part of our everyday lives, so it’s important we lead by example and teach our children how to be safe in a digital world.
The first step is to establish a clear a set of rules and guidelines about online behavior that are firmly enforced within your community.
This is usually called an ICT policy. What does a good online citizen look like?
Here are a few basic guidelines to get you started.
1. Don’t disclose
Never share your personal information or reply to unsolicited emails or calls.
2. Don’t download
Avoid downloading or installing any software you’re unsure of that could possibly hurt your computer, mobile device or jeopardize your privacy.
3. Share responsibly
Never share content that is offensive or inappropriate. Never share images that do not belong to you, and always ask permission before posting photos of others.
4. Update your security software
Keep your antivirus and spyware software up to date. Educa is a secure site. However, if you download your child’s file, you will then be relying on the security of your computer to keep the data safe and secure.
Keep your firewall switched on and look out for any signs that your computer might be infected. A telltale symptom is your security software failing to start up.
5. Beware of links
Don’t randomly click on pop up links or links sent to you in emails. The links could refer you to a site containing a harmful virus.
6. Be considerate
Never do anything that hurts other people or is against the law.
7. Speak up
If you see something that makes you uncomfortable, report it.
If you’d like to learn more about keeping yourself and your family safe online, check out these great cyber safety resources below: