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Real-Time data shows exactly how students use AI on school technology. Roughly one in five student interactions with generative artificial intelligence on school technology involved cheating, self-harm, bullying, and other problematic behaviors, according to data collected and analyzed by Securly, a company offering internet filtering and other safety services. What's more, Securly identified roughly 1 in 50 student-AI interactions as red flags that students might be involved in violence, cyberbullying, or self-harm. Securly's analysis looked at nearly 1.2 million interactions in more than 1,300 districts from Dec. 1, 2025, to Feb. 20, 2026. For you. Educators should take heart that most of the time, students use AI appropriately, said Tammy Wincup, the CEO of Securly, whose competitors include GoGuardian and Lightspeed Systems. "When a district actually sets some guardrails and policies around their AI usage in schools, 80% of the conversations happening are within the district's policies," Wincup said. "That's the good news on the learning side of the house." Why the usage data is so 'fascinating' The analysis offers an early window into how students actually use generative AI tools. Most other research on student usage of AI comes from surveys, which rely on student self-reporting. Securly's data shows "what are students really doing when they're writing text into generative AI," said Jeremy Roschelle, the co-executive director of learning science research for Digital Promise, a nonprofit organization that works on equity and technology issues in schools. "That's why it's fascinating," he said. In November, Securly allowed district officials to set parameters around students' AI use, similar to the way they ask the company to filter out particular types of websites. If districts opt to use this feature, large language models will "deflect" a student's query to AI that's out-of-bounds with district policy. For instance, if a student tries to use AI to complete an assignment, large language models may instead point to information on the general topic but won't supply an exact answer. Or if a student asks about dosing for a particular medication, the tool will tell them to ask a trusted adult for help. Nearly all the deflected student queries - 95% - were from students trying to get AI tools to complete their schoolwork for them. That percentage didn't surprise Wincup. She expects that when districts allow students to use large language models on school networks and devices, kids will "experiment with understanding the guardrails" placed around the tools and try to get around those guardrails. Another 2% of the interactions identified as inappropriate related to games. A little less than 1% dealt with sexual content and a similar percentage concerned firearms or hunting. Gambling, drugs, and hate (such as racism and antisemitism) each comprised roughly 0.5% of flagged interactions. Though only 2 percent of interactions were identified as potentially unsafe, that represents more than 24,000 queries overall. And some of the questions students asked AI were troubling. For instance, one student directed a large language model to help draft an email to their mother explaining they had suicidal thoughts. Another student conducted a quick series of internet searches on questions, including "What's the main nerve in the forearm?" and "What nerve near the wrist carries blood?" Then the student switched to an AI tool, asking it how to commit suicide. (In both of these cases, the identity of the student was 'unmasked' by Securly and district officials were made aware of the safety issues.) Students used chatgpt more often than large language models created for K-12 schools. Overall, Securly detected a higher percentage of potentially unsafe AI interactions - 2% - than potentially unsafe student internet searches, 0.4%. It's too early to pinpoint an exact explanation for that discrepancy, Wincup said. She noted that Securly has had many years to hone its system for recognizing when a student's internet searches may be a sign of danger, while its work with AI interactions is brand new. Roschelle, meanwhile, is curious about what, exactly, students asked AI in the 80 percent of interactions that were deemed appropriate for school. How did their prompts and AI's responses help - or hinder - their understanding of an assignment, an issue, or the world around them, he wondered. "What we want to do is make sure [AI] is not just appropriate, but is actually valuable for student learning," Roschelle said. The analysis also revealed which large language models students use most often. ChatGPT is by far the most popular, accounting for 42% of interactions. Securly's AI Chat made up 28%. Google's Gemini comprised 21%. And other ed-tech tools that embed AI features - including MagicSchool, SchoolAI, and BriskTeaching - comprised 9%. (That data isn't nationally representative because only districts that use Securly have access to Securly AI. But Wincup believes "big tech" large language models are probably most popular in all districts.) AI puts education technology leaders in a new position, Wincup said. "They're no longer just buying things and setting things up like this," she said. This is a moment "where they have to have visibility in order to help their district make not just great tech decisions but make great teaching and learning decisions." Alyson Klein is an assistant editor for Education Week. Related Tags:

Lightspeed Systems has launched the Lightspeed Leadership Dashboard, a unified K–12 reporting platform providing district-level insights into student screen time, safety trends, application usage, and device health. The tool consolidates data previously scattered across multiple systems into a single executive view. The dashboard includes anonymised benchmarking against similarly sized districts nationwide, drawing on data from over 30,000 schools. Leaders can evaluate school-day and after-hours screen time, AI usage trends, safety indicators, and internet traffic patterns to support board presentations and strategic planning. The platform is powered by Lightspeed's suite of products, which serve over 23 million students across 31,000 schools in 43 countries. The Austin-based company has over 25 years of experience in educational technology, offering web filtering, safety monitoring, and classroom management solutions.

Lightspeed verified by Common Sense Privacy with an exceptional 95% score. Austin, TX - 12/11/25 - Lightspeed Systems has been awarded the Common Sense Privacy Verified Seal, earning a 95% pass rating (the highest possible pass rating). This recognition reflects Lightspeed's decades-long commitment to protecting student data, maintaining transparent data privacy practices, and setting a high standard for privacy in K - 12 education technology. The Common Sense Privacy Seal is granted only to organizations that undergo the group's most rigorous review process. Lightspeed completed a comprehensive evaluation of the Lightspeed Systems app experience, including all privacy and related policies in effect as of December 1, 2025. As part of the certification, Lightspeed has agreed to ongoing quarterly check-ups, annual privacy policy updates, and prompt updates following any major change in data practices. "This achievement reflects our deep, long-standing commitment to safeguarding student data," said Brian Thomas, CEO of Lightspeed Systems. "Earning the highest score awarded by Common Sense to date validates the strength of our privacy practices and the trust districts place in Lightspeed to safeguard their communities." A rigorous review of Lightspeed's Data Privacy practices. The Common Sense Privacy Seal is reserved for organizations that meet or exceed strict standards across more than 200 criteria. As part of this process, Common Sense conducted a thorough review of Lightspeed's products, policies, data governance commitments, and security practices as of December 1, 2025. Lightspeed Systems earned top marks for the following criteria: * 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 personalized advertisements. Achieving a 95% rating across these dimensions underscores Lightspeed's leadership in responsible data stewardship. A privacy-first approach built into every Lightspeed solution. Privacy-by-design principles guide how all Lightspeed solutions are built and supported, from minimizing the data collected to maintaining transparent practices and applying industry-standard security safeguards. These practices ensure districts can rely on Lightspeed not only for technology, but for a trusted partnership in protecting student information. This privacy-first foundation is further strengthened through Lightspeed Insight(TM), which helps districts uphold their own security and compliance obligations with tools designed specifically to support data governance. Insight adds an additional layer of protection and oversight through: * Third-party app privacy reviews via integration with 1EdTech's TrustEd Apps Program * Integration with the Student Data Privacy Consortium (SDPC) to further streamline vetting and contract management * Automated privacy policy scanning that flags changes and potential risks * State compliance tools that help districts expedite app vetting and maintain public approved apps lists By combining independently verified privacy practices with analytics and governance tools built for K - 12, Lightspeed empowers districts to manage digital learning environments with confidence - supporting safer, more compliant, and more transparent use of educational technology. About Lightspeed Systems With more than 25 years of serving education, Lightspeed Systems delivers the most in-depth visibility and control to power exceptional schools where students are safe and engaged; technology is compliant and easily managed; and resources are secure and optimized. Purpose-built for school networks and devices, Lightspeed's cloud-managed solutions include the most effective web filtering, student safety monitoring, classroom management, device management, and data analytics software available. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, with a European office in London, UK, Lightspeed serves over 23 million students across 31,000 schools in 43 countries, utilizing 15 million devices.