Safer Technologies for Schools (ST4S) is a digital safety program developed and administered by Education Services Australia (ESA), in collaboration with Australian states, territories, Catholic and independent school sectors and the New Zealand Ministry of Education. The aim of this initiative is to provide

• transparent requirements and standards for safety and security assessment, and

• summary reports for digital services and products to reduce risk to schools.

The ST4S provides a nation-wide standardised approach against transparent security, privacy and interoperability standards in an effort to enhance the security, privacy and online safety of online education products and services used by Australian and New Zealand schools.

The ST4S working group consists of security and privacy professionals from ANZ who meet regularly to discuss and review the ST4S Assessment Framework and ensure that it caters to privacy and security matters relevant to the education sector.

The framework has been developed in collaboration with Australian and New Zealand education jurisdictions - including state, territory, Catholic and independent schools sectors with a shared goal to provide following benefits to the education community:

1. clear and consistent information for schools and educators regarding online products and services,

2. more compliant products and services to ensure online safety for students, teachers and families,

3. standardised and aligned assessment processes for suppliers and results that are respected by all participating stakeholders.

Suppliers can either participate in the assessment through self-nomination or can be invited by a school or education community to undergo assessment.

1. Suppliers needs to complete a Readiness Check and iterate until they are eligible to submit for a full assessment. Once ready, suppliers can submit their result to ST4S working group and request to undertake full assessment.

2. Full assessment includes an online questionnaire with a range of criteria across various categories such as data protection, software development practices, organisational security, privacy and security controls and incident management. Suppliers are required to attest that their responses to the questionnaire are true, accurate, up-to date and they maybe be required to provide documentation to prove their claims.

3. Upon completion of the review, final results are available to the supplier, ST4S working group, educational jurisdiction Chief Information Officers and the New Zealand Ministry of Education.

4. The ST4S Product Badge Program allows schools and educators to easily identify suppliers who have been assessed, giving them the peace of mind that their product or service has met the minimum required standards to participate in the badge program. It also ensures that comprehensive privacy and security information is available to support usage in schools. It is also important to note that not all products that have been assessed are eligible to use the badge.

Life Skills GO has been assessed by ST4S and has been approved for the badge program.

To verify the badge, please visit: Verify a Badge

ST4S program has assessed over 200 products and the results have contributed to a safer eco-system for schools as well as improved awareness among the education community regarding security and privacy when choosing education technology products and services. Suppliers can participate in the assessment as it is a simple and free process and reduces the hassle to undergo multiple local assessments.

FAQ

Q1. How can I request a copy of ST4S assessment report for Life Skills GO?

Answer: You may reach out to your local authority to request the assessment report.

Q2. How can I verify the ST4S badge received by Life Skills GO?

Answer: To verify the badge, please visit Verify a Badge and search for "Life Skills GO".

References

1. Home . (n.d.). Safer Technologies 4 Schools – Supporting Schools, Teachers and Parents. [online] Available at: Home .

2. Education Services Australia . (2019). Education Services Australia. [online] Available at: Education Services Australia .

3. ESA-SF-10-2. (n.d.). A national approach to safer technologies in schools. [online] Available at: A national approach to safer technologies in schools [Accessed 21 May 2023].

4. Education Services Australia . (n.d.). Safer Technologies 4 Schools | Education Services Australia. [online] Available at: Safer Technologies 4 Schools | Education Services Australia [Accessed 21 May 2023].

5. Home . (n.d.). Badge Program – Safer Technologies 4 Schools. [online] Available at: Badge Program [Accessed 21 May 2023].