Common Sense Privacy Program

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Privacy Evaluation for Edsby

Last updated
Applications and services with a Pass rating have met our minimum requirements for privacy and security practices. Before using an application or service with this rating, parents, teachers, schools, and districts are strongly advised to read the full privacy evaluation as a starting point for the process of vetting the application or service. In addition, a more detailed review should happen before any child or student data is shared with a product.

95%

Pass

Learn how we rate

Overview

Edsby is a cloud-based platform for K-12 schools that incorporates learning management, data aggregation and real-time analytics. Edsby's terms state they allow a user to place uploaded content in messages, profiles, private notes, calendar events, grade books, and postings in shared places that may be shared by other members of the service. Edsby's terms state they collect a user's personal information, user content that they upload to the service, and usage information on the service. In addition, Edsby's terms state they take appropriate security measures to protect a user’s information against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. Edsby's terms state they do not allow a student to create an account directly with the vendor and require students to obtain verifiable parental consent beforehand in compliance with FERPA.

Edsby can be accessed through its website, and is available for download at the iOS App Store, and the Google Play Store. The Privacy Policy and Terms of Use accessed for this evaluation can be found on Edsby’s website, iOS App Store, and the Google Play Store. This evaluation only considers policies that have been made publicly available prior to an individual using the application or service.

Safety

Edsby's terms state they allow a user to place uploaded content in messages, profiles, private notes, calendar events, grade books, and postings in shared places that may be shared by other members of the service. In addition, the terms state metadata associated with user content can also be visible to members of the service and those who download the content. However, the service limits visibility of a user's information to the associated school, teacher, classroom, and students in the class.

Privacy

Edsby's terms state they collect a user's personal information, user content that they upload to the service, and usage information on the service. The terms state they do not sell a user’s personal information or the user content that they provide. However, the terms state they may share aggregated or de-identified data that contains no personally identifiable information with third parties. Lastly, the terms say Edsby does not send marketing messages to users and does not make offers to users like sweepstakes or contests.

Security

Edsby's terms state they take appropriate security measures to protect a user’s information against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. The terms state they maintain appropriate physical, electronic, and managerial procedures to safeguard and secure the information and data stored on the site. In addition, because the vendor delivers its service as a cloud service, collected data is commercially shared with third party cloud hosting companies and is designed with high levels of security and reliability.

Compliance

Edsby's terms state they do not allow a student to create an account directly with the vendor and require students to obtain verifiable parental consent beforehand in compliance with FERPA. The terms state student accounts are only created under the direction of administrators and teachers at the student's educational organization. A student user is permitted to access a specific Edsby school community only if they have been specifically and directly invited and authorized to do so by the administrative staff and/or a teacher within that education organization. In addition, the terms state the service is designed so that only teachers at the student’s school, designated administrative staff, and the student’s parents have access to a student’s personal information.

Rating

This product received a Pass rating based on the following details:
  • Personal information is not sold or rented to third parties.
  • Personal information is not shared for third-party marketing.
  • Personalised advertising is not displayed.
  • Data are not collected by third-parties for their own purposes.
  • User's information is not used to track and target advertisements on other third-party websites or services.
  • Data profiles are not created and used for personalised advertisements.
Data Collection
SCORE: 75%

What data does it collect?

  • Personally identifiable information (PII) is collected.
  • The categories of collected personally identifiable information are indicated.
  • Collection or use of data is limited to product requirements.
  • Geolocation data are not collected.
  • Biometric or health data are not collected.
  • Interactions, behaviors, or usage analytics data are collected.
  • Sensitive data are collected.
  • Data is automatically collected.
  • Opt-in consent is requested from users at the time personal information is collected.
  • Personal information of users is collected by a third party.
Data Sharing
SCORE: 75%

What data does it share?

  • Collected information is shared with third parties.
  • Unclear whether the categories of information shared with third parties are indicated.
  • The purpose for sharing a user's personal information with third parties is indicated.
  • Unclear whether the categories of third parties that receive data are indicated.
  • Data are shared for analytics.
  • Data are not shared for research and/or product improvement.
  • Third-party services are used to support the product.
  • The roles of third-party service providers are indicated.
  • Third-party login is supported.
  • Contractual limits are placed on third-party data use.
Data Security
SCORE: 85%

How does it secure data?

  • A user's identity is verified with additional personal information.
  • Account creation is required.
  • Managed accounts are available.
  • Multi-factor account protection is available.
  • Unclear whether third-parties with access to information are required to provide the same security protections as the company.
  • Reasonable security practices are used to protect data.
  • Employee or physical access to user information is limited.
  • All data in transit are encrypted.
  • All data are stored in an encrypted format.
  • Notice is provided in the event of a data breach.
Data Rights
SCORE: 85%

What rights do I have to the data?

  • Users can create or upload content.
  • Users retain ownership of their data.
  • Processes to access or review user data are available.
  • Processes to modify data are available for authorized users.
  • A data-retention policy is available.
  • Processes for authorized users to delete data are available.
  • A user's data are deleted upon account cancellation or termination.
  • Unclear whether this product deletes data when no longer necessary.
  • Methods are available to restrict who has access to data.
  • Processes to download user data are available.
Data Sold
SCORE: 75%

Is the data sold?

  • Personal information is not sold or rented to third parties.
  • Users can opt out from the disclosure or sale of their data to a third party.
  • User information can be transferred to a third party in the event of a merge, acquisition, or bankruptcy.
  • Users are notified if their information is transferred to a third party.
  • Unclear whether user information can be deleted prior to its transfer to a third party.
  • Unclear whether third-party transfers are contractually required to use the same privacy practices.
  • User information that is shared is shared in an anonymous or de-identified format.
  • The company describes their de-identification process of user information.
  • Data are not shared for research and/or product improvement.
  • Contractual limits prohibit third parties from reidentifying or de-identified information.
Data Safety
SCORE: 90%

How safe is this product?

  • Users can interact with trusted users.
  • Users cannot interact with untrusted users, including strangers and/or adults.
  • Profile information must be not shared for social interactions.
  • Personal information can be not displayed publicly.
  • Users can control how their data are displayed to others.
  • User-created content is reviewed, screened, or monitored by the company.
  • Unclear whether user-created content is filtered for personal information before being made publicly visible.
  • Social interactions between users are moderated.
  • Social interactions of users are logged.
  • Users can report abuse or cyberbullying.
Ads & Tracking
SCORE: 90%

Are there advertisements or tracking?

  • Personal information is not shared for third-party marketing.
  • Traditional or contextual advertisements are not displayed.
  • Personalised advertising is not displayed.
  • Data are not collected by third-parties for their own purposes.
  • User's information is not used to track and target advertisements on other third-party websites or services.
  • Data profiles are not created and used for personalised advertisements.
  • The company cannot send marketing messages.
  • The company does not provide promotional sweepstakes, contests, or surveys.
  • Unclear whether this product provides users the ability to opt-out of contextual, or personalised advertising.
  • Users can opt out or unsubscribe from marketing communications.
Parental Consent
SCORE: 85%

Can I provide parental consent?

  • Intended for children under 13.
  • Personal information from children under 13 years of age is collected.
  • Intended for parents or guardians.
  • Unclear whether company has actual knowledge that personal information from users under 13 years of age is collected.
  • The company does provide a section, heading, or separate policy for children in their policies.
  • Parental consent is required before personal information is collected or disclosed.
  • Parental consent is limited with respect to third parties.
  • Parents can withdraw consent for the further collection of their child's information.
  • Children's personal information is deleted if collected without parental consent.
  • Parental consent notice and method for submission are provided.
School Purpose
SCORE: 63%

Is the product intended for school?

  • Intended for students.
  • Personal information or education records are collected from preK-12 students.
  • Intended for teachers.
  • Product is primarily used by, designed for, and marketed toward students in grades preK–12.
  • Processes to enter education records into the product are not described.
  • Additional rights or protections may be provided with an additional school contract.
  • Unclear whether the company is designated as a school official.
  • Parental consent obligations are transferred to the school or district.
Individual Control
SCORE: 60%

Can I control the use of my data?

  • Users can control the use of their information through privacy settings.
  • Use of information is limited to the purpose for which it was collected.
  • The context or purpose for which data are collected is indicated.
  • Company will not combine data with additional data from third-party sources.
  • Unclear whether this product treats combined information as personally identifiable information (PII).
  • Unclear whether notice is provided if the context in which data are collected changes.
  • Unclear whether consent is obtained if the practices in which data are collected change.
  • A grievance or remedy mechanism is available for users to file a complaint.
  • Users can request to know what personal information has been shared with third parties.
  • Unclear whether notice is provided in the event the company receives a government or legal request for a user's information.

Common Sense Standard Privacy Report (SPR)

The standard privacy report (SPR) displays all the privacy practices from a product's policies in a single, easy-to-read outline. The report shows a green check mark for better privacy practices and an orange alert for risky or unclear practices. This alert indicates that more time should be focused on these particular details prior to use.

Learn more about the SPR Read the report

About Privacy Evaluations

The privacy evaluations have been designed with the help and support of a consortium of schools and districts across the United States. These evaluations are designed to help educators make informed decisions about the potential privacy implications of educational technology used to support teaching and learning.

Our core evaluation criteria will always be freely available. People are encouraged to read the questions we use and our information security primer. Vendors are encouraged to use our questions and the information security primer to self-evaluate. You can also learn more about our evaluation process. Please be in touch with any questions or feedback.