Overview

Remind is a messaging platform that helps educators, students, parents and other users send messages. The terms of Remind state it is used for communicating between students and teachers within a classroom, so there is potential for the application to share sensitive information. Remind's terms state they collect personal information and non-personal usage information automatically through use of the service. In addition, Remind's terms state they secure information using encryption of all data at rest and requiring third-party services to maintain strict privacy and security policies. The terms state student data is not sold to third parties and there is no targeted advertising on the service. However, the policy does not disclose whether it tracks any type of users on the site and across the internet for commercial purposes. Lastly, Remind's terms state they only collect information from children and students under 13 to support learning, such as first and last name, date of birth, contact information, and the child’s parent’s email address to verify parental consent.

Remind 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 used for this evaluation can be found on Remind’s website, the iOS App Store, and the Google Play Store. Additionally, other policies used for this evaluation include: Remind School Plan Standard Agreement, Remind District Plan Standard Agreement, Remind Data Practices, Anti-Bullying Policy, and Community Guidelines. This evaluation only considers policies that have been made publicly available prior to an individual using the application or service.

Safety

The terms of Remind state it is used for communicating between students and teachers within a classroom, so there is some potential for the application to share sensitive information. Remind users can only receive messages from Remind, verified administrators, or other users in the same class or group. Additionally, users may only join classes or groups with unique access codes. Remind’s policies state that while the company will never display personal information outside of groups or publicly, access codes and posted content are the responsibility of the group or class’s manager and should be tightly controlled. Terms also state that content may be monitored for appropriateness according to Anti-Bullying Policy and Community Guidelines documents by the company, and encourage users to report inappropriate content.

Privacy

The terms of Remind state they collect personal information and non-personal usage information automatically through use of the Service. Information collected from users under 13 may include a name, date of birth, district, school, class, grades and report card, and video or audio recordings of students. Remind's terms specify that Personally Identifiable Information may be shared with third parties embedded and integrated within Remind. They state that third party contractors are contractually bound, in writing, to providing at least equivalent privacy and security measures as Remind. However, third-party tracking technologies, such as Google Analytics cookies, are not covered by the Remind policy. In addition, Remind's terms state that they will not sell nor rent personal information to third parties, nor serve behaviorally targeted ads.

Security

Remind's terms state they secure information using encryption of all data at rest and requiring third-party services to maintain strict privacy and security policies. Remind's terms state they have administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to protect against unauthorized use, disclosure, and access to Personal Information, and work with administrators, third-party auditors, and penetration testing firms, to maintain and strengthen their security. Remind uses Amazon Web Services (AWS) and other third-party services within the AWS environment to host and operate its databases. AWS is an industry-leading cloud service platform designed and managed in compliance with relevant regulations, standards, and best-practices, such as FedRAMP and iKeepSafe COPPA Safe Harbor Program guidelines. If Remind becomes aware of a data breach of its users’ personally identifiable information, Remind's terms state they will notify affected users.

Compliance

Remind's terms state they only collect information from children and students under 13 to support learning, such as first and last name, date of birth, contact information, and the child’s parent’s email address to verify parental consent. In addition, Remind’s terms state that they only collect personal information through the services from children under 13 where that student’s school, district and/or teacher has agreed after receiving parental consent. If Remind does not receive the parent’s email address within a reasonable time period after registration, the under 13 user will not be able to receive any messages and their Personal Information will be deleted. The policies clearly indicate that there is a data retention and automatic deletion policy for users under 13, but do not specify such policies for users over age 13. Remind users may view, update, or remove information in their user account (such as email address and name), their user preferences, and the content in their account (excepting some messages) at any time. Additionally, users may request deletion of their entire Remind account through their user preferences or contacting the company.

Overall Score

Every privacy rating includes an overall score. A higher score (up to 100%) means the product provides more transparent privacy policies with better practices to protect user data. The score is best used is as an indicator of how much additional work a person will need to do to make an informed decision about a product.

Basic ScoreFull Score
Comprehensive Assessment7759

Concerns

The privacy evaluation process summarizes the policies of an application or service into concern categories based on a subset of evaluation questions that can be used to quickly identify particular practices of a vendor’s policies. These concerns are composed of evaluation questions that can be used to calculate scores relative to that concern.

ConcernBasic ScoreFull Score
Data Collection: Protecting personal information6740
Data Sharing: Protecting data from third parties10060
Data Security: Protecting against unauthorized access6765
Data Rights: Controlling rights to data8855
Data Sold: Preventing sale of data7555
Data Safety: Promoting responsible use8370
Ads & Tracking: Prohibiting the exploitation of users' decision making process5045
Parental Consent: Protecting children’s personal information10085
School Purpose: Following student data privacy laws10063
Individual Control: Controlling data useNA45

Statutes

Each statute or regulation is associated with one or more evaluation questions. As such, we can calculate scores for each statute or regulation using only those questions associated with the statute or regulation. Each specific statute or regulation's score serves as an indirect proxy indicating the likelihood of the application or service satisfying all of its compliance obligations.

StatuteBasic ScoreFull Score
California Online Privacy Protection Act (CalOPPA)7562
Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA)7463
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)7966
Student Online Personal Information Protection Act (SOPIPA)8065
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)8763
The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)7051

Privacy Policy Details

1: Transparency

1.1: Policy Version
  • Privacy policies do indicate a version or effective date.
  • Privacy policies do not indicate a change log or past policy version is available.
1.2: Policy Notice
  • Users are notified if there are any material changes to the policies.
  • Privacy policies indicate the method used to notify a user when policies are updated.
1.3: Policy Changes
  • Users are notified prior to any material changes to the policies.
  • Unclear whether changes to the policies are effective immediately and continued use of the product indicates consent.
1.4: Policy Coverage
  • Privacy policies indicate the products that are covered by the policies.
1.5: Privacy Contact
  • Users can contact the company about any privacy policy questions, complaints, or material changes to the policies.
1.6: Policy Principles
  • Privacy policies do indicate privacy principles, layered notices, or a table of contents.
1.7: Policy Language
  • Privacy policies are not available in multiple languages.
1.8: Intended Use
  • Intended for children under 13.
  • Intended for teens.
  • Intended for adults over 18.
  • Intended for parents or guardians.
  • Intended for students.
  • Intended for teachers.

2: Focused Collection

2.1: Data Collection
  • Personally identifiable information (PII) is collected.
  • The categories of collected personally identifiable information are indicated.
  • Geolocation data are collected.
  • Unclear whether this product collects biometric or health data.
  • Interactions, behaviors, or usage analytics data are collected.
  • Sensitive data are collected.
  • Data is automatically collected.
2.2: Data Source
  • Personal information or education records are collected from preK-12 students.
  • Personal information from children under 13 years of age is collected.
2.3: Data Excluded
  • Specific types of personal information are excluded from collection.
  • Specific types of collected information are excluded from the privacy policy.
2.4: Data Limitation
  • Collection or use of data is not limited to product requirements.

3: Data Sharing

3.1: Data Shared With Third Parties
  • Collected information is shared with third parties.
  • Unclear whether the categories of information shared with third parties are indicated.
3.2: Data Use by Third Parties
  • The purpose for sharing a user's personal information with third parties is indicated.
  • Data are shared for analytics.
  • Data are shared for research and/or product improvement.
  • Personal information is shared for third-party marketing.
3.3: Data Not Shared With Third Parties
  • Specific categories of information are not shared with third parties.
3.4: Data Sold to Third Parties
  • Personal information is not sold or rented to third parties.
3.5: Third-Party Data Acquisition
  • Personal information about users is obtained from third parties.
3.6: Third-Party Links
  • Links to third-party external websites are not age-appropriate.
3.7: Third-Party Data Access
  • Unclear whether third parties are authorized to access a user's information.
3.8: Third-Party Data Collection
  • Unclear whether personal information of users is collected by a third party.
3.9: Third-Party Data Misuse
  • Unclear whether personal information can be deleted from a third party.
3.10: Third-Party Service Providers
  • Third-party services are used to support the product.
  • The roles of third-party service providers are indicated.
3.11: Third-Party Affiliates
  • Unclear whether the categories of third parties that receive data are indicated.
3.12: Third-Party Policies
  • Links to privacy policies of third-party companies are available.
3.13: Third-Party Data Combination
  • Unclear whether company may combine data with additional data from third-party sources.
  • Unclear whether data shared with third parties can be combined with other data.
3.14: Third-Party Authentication
  • Unclear whether this product supports third-party login.
  • Unclear whether personal information from third-party login providers is collected.
  • Unclear whether personal Information is shared with third-party login providers.
3.15: De-identified or Anonymized Data
  • User information that is shared is not shared in an anonymous or de-identified format.
  • Unclear whether the company describes their de-identification process of user information.
3.16: Third-Party Contractual Obligations
  • Contractual limits are placed on third-party data use.
  • Unclear whether contractual limits prohibit third parties from reidentifying or de-identified information.

4: Respect for Context

4.1: Data Use
  • Use of information is not limited to the purpose for which it was collected.
  • The context or purpose for which data are collected is indicated.
4.2: Data Combination
  • Combined information is treated as personally identifiable information (PII).
4.3: Data Notice
  • Notice is provided if the context in which data are collected changes.
4.4: Data Changes
  • Unclear whether consent is obtained if the practices in which data are collected change.
4.5: Policy Enforcement
  • Accounts may be terminated if users engage in any prohibited activities.

5: Individual Control

5.1: User Content
  • Users can create or upload content.
5.2: User Consent
  • Unclear whether opt-in consent is requested from users at the time personal information is collected.
5.3: Remedy Process
  • Unclear whether a grievance or remedy mechanism is available for users to file a complaint.
5.4: Data Settings
  • Unclear whether users can control the use of their information through privacy settings.
5.5: Data Disclosure
  • Unclear whether users can opt out from the disclosure or sale of their data to a third party.
  • Unclear whether users can request to know what personal information has been shared with third parties.
  • Notice is provided in the event the company receives a government or legal request for a user's information.
5.6: Intellectual Property
  • Users retain ownership of their data.
  • A copyright license is claimed to data or content collected from a user.
  • Any copyright license to a user's data is limited in scope or duration.

6: Access and Accuracy

6.1: Data Access
  • Processes to access or review user data are available.
  • Methods are available to restrict who has access to data.
  • Processes to review student data are available for the school, parents, or students.
6.2: Data Integrity
  • Unclear whether the company attempts to maintain the accuracy of data they collect.
6.3: Data Correction
  • Processes to modify data are available for authorized users.
  • Processes for the school, parents, or students to modify inaccurate student information are available.
  • Unclear whether the time period for the company to modify inaccurate data is indicated.
6.4: Data Retention
  • Unclear whether the product provides a data-retention policy.
  • Exceptions to the data retention policy exist.
6.5: Data Deletion
  • Unclear whether this product deletes data when no longer necessary.
  • Unclear whether a user's data are deleted upon account cancellation or termination.
  • Processes to delete user data are available.
  • Processes for authorized users to delete data are available.
  • Unclear whether the time period for the company to delete data is indicated.
6.6: Data Portability
  • Unclear whether this product provides users the ability to download their data.
  • Unclear whether a user can assign an authorized account manager or legacy contact.

7: Data Transfer

7.1: Data Handling
  • 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.
7.2: Transfer Request
  • User information can not be deleted prior to its transfer to a third party.
7.3: Onward Contractual Obligations
  • Third-party transfer is contractually required to use the same privacy practices.

8: Security

8.1: User Identity
  • A user's identity is verified with additional personal information.
8.2: User Account
  • Unclear whether this product requires account creation.
  • Managed accounts are available.
  • Unclear whether multi-factor account protection is available.
8.3: Third-Party Security
  • Third-parties with access to information are required to provide the same security protections as the company.
8.4: Data Confidentiality
  • Reasonable security practices are used to protect data.
  • Employee or physical access to user information is limited.
8.5: Data Transmission
  • Unclear whether this product encrypts all data in transit.
8.6: Data Storage
  • All data are stored in an encrypted format.
  • The company is clear what jurisdiction a user's personal information is subject to.
8.7: Data Breach
  • Notice is provided in the event of a data breach.
8.8: Data Oversight
  • Data-privacy and/or security-compliance audits are performed.

9: Responsible Use

9.1: Social Interactions
  • Users can interact with trusted users.
  • Users cannot interact with untrusted users, including strangers and/or adults.
  • Unclear whether profile information must be shared for social interactions.
9.2: Data Visibility
  • Personal information can be displayed publicly.
  • Users can control how their data are displayed to others.
9.3: Monitor and Review
  • Unclear whether user-created content is reviewed, screened, or monitored by the company.
  • User-created content is not filtered for personal information before being made publicly visible.
  • Social interactions between users are moderated.
  • Social interactions of users are logged.
9.4: Report Content
  • Unclear whether users can filter or block inappropriate content.
  • Users can report abuse or cyberbullying.
9.5: Internet Safety
  • The company provides links to resources that support safe and appropriate social interactions.

10: Advertising

10.1: Company Communications
  • A user can receive service- or administrative-related communications from the company.
10.2: Traditional Advertising
  • Unclear whether this product displays traditional or contextual advertisements.
10.3: Behavioral Advertising
  • Personalised advertising is not displayed.
10.4: Ad Tracking
  • Data are collected by third-parties for their own purposes.
  • Unclear whether this product uses a user's information to track and target advertisements on other third-party websites or services.
  • Data profiles are not created and used for personalised advertisements.
10.5: Filtered Advertising
  • Unclear whether ads displayed to children are filtered for inappropriate content.
10.6: Marketing Communications
  • The company can send marketing messages.
  • Unclear whether this company provides promotional sweepstakes, contests, or surveys.
10.7: Unsubscribe
  • 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.
10.8: Do Not Track
  • Unclear whether this product responds to "Do Not Track" or other opt-out mechanisms.
  • Unclear whether the company provides a method for users to opt-out from third-party tracking.

11: Compliance

11.1: Children Under 13
  • Company does have 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.
  • Account creation is restricted or prohibited for users under 13 years of age.
11.2: Students in K–12
  • Product is primarily used by, designed for, and marketed toward students in grades preK–12.
  • Processes to enter education records into the product are described.
  • Unclear whether additional rights or protections may be provided with an additional school contract.
  • Unclear whether the company is designated as a school official.
11.3: Parental Consent
  • Parental consent is required before personal information is collected or disclosed.
  • Unclear whether this product limits parental consent 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.
  • Parental consent obligations are transferred to the school or district.
11.4: Legal Requirements
  • The legal jurisdiction that applies to the laws governing the policies is indicated.
  • A user is required to waive the right to a jury trial, or settle any disputes by arbitration.
  • A user is required to waive the right to join a class action lawsuit.
  • A company will disclose personal information to law enforcement.
11.5: Certification
  • The company has signed a privacy pledge or received a privacy certification.
11.6: International Laws
  • A user's data are subject to International data transfer or jurisdiction laws.
  • Unclear whether the company has indicated it is a Data Controller or Data Processor.