The internet has not only significantly changed communication styles, but it has also redefined the entire education system. Students and learners do not have to get lost in encyclopedias any longer, instead, they have a new way of doing research, the ability to think critically to compare resources of information and the opportunity to come up with authentic ways to express themselves.
Unfortunately, the internet can also be a gateway to harmful and inappropriate content, especially for young people. School safeguarding policies are crucial to keep students safe both online and offline. Most countries enforce legislations which require schools to have an appropriate content filtering and monitoring service that controls what kind of websites students can access through the schools’ networks.
Safer Internet Section of the Communications Regulatory Authority of the Republic of Lithuania (RRT), conducts a strict evaluation system to decide which content filtering services are suitable to be officially recommended for educational institutions within the Republic of Lithuania.
The RRT starts by identifying potentially appropriate content filtering providers, and performing virtual tests that focus on crucial aspects for school network protection such as Web Based Proxy sites, Application Control, and Web Categorization.
A powerful content filtering system applies specific parameters to content that is being received through the internet, and makes the decision to restrict or allow access to certain materials on websites or in emails. It is usually a part of a firewall.
During the evaluation of Zenarmor, virtual machines were put to use. Two virtual clients were connected to the virtual OPNsense Firewall / Router with Zenarmor to assess the content filtering and web categorization functionalities of the product.
After a thorough analysis, RRT now officially recommends Zenarmor as a suitable content filtering provider for all nationwide academic institutions like schools, colleges, universities and libraries.
Find the official statement from Communications Regulatory Authority of the Republic of Lithuania approving Zenarmor here.
Looking to secure your school network? Find out more about what Zenarmor has to offer for the EDU landscape here.