Cloud Monitor helps identify student safety concerns, investigate incidents faster, and strengthen Microsoft 365 security
Cloud Monitor helps identify student safety concerns, investigate incidents faster, and strengthen Microsoft 365 security
With approximately 11,000 students, 1,500 staff members, and thousands of connected devices, the Director of Information Technology at one West Virginia district understands that providing digital access also means ensuring students stay safe online.
The district primarily uses Microsoft 365 for email, shared drives, and collaboration tools. While web filtering was already in place, leadership recognized that major blind spots remained.
“If we save one kid, Cloud Monitor is worth every penny. We’ve identified students who were writing suicide notes, students struggling with self-harm, and other situations where we were able to get counselors involved before things got worse. You can’t put a price on that.”
“We were giving students all these tools, but there were entire areas where we really didn’t know what was happening,” says the Director of IT. “We filtered the internet, but we had nothing touching email and OneDrive. Those were big gaps.”
Challenges
Like many districts, this West Virginia school system rapidly expanded access to devices during the COVID era. While providing students with technology was necessary, it also introduced new challenges.
“The biggest challenge was the unknown,” says the IT director. “We didn’t know what we had done to our students when we put all these devices in front of them. There wasn’t much accountability or visibility.”
They quickly realized that internet filtering alone wasn’t enough; they had limited insight into what was happening inside Microsoft 365. While staff could filter websites and monitor internet activity, email conversations, file sharing, and OneDrive content remained largely unchecked.
“We wanted to make our students’ online experience as safe as possible. We made a conscious effort to control what we can control and identify problems before they become something bigger,” he recalls.
“Before Cloud Monitor, we filtered the internet, but we had no visibility into what was happening inside email and OneDrive. Now we have the insight we need to identify risks, investigate incidents quickly, and make sure our students are getting the support they need.”
The lack of visibility created concerns around inappropriate content sharing, bullying, self-harm, and other student safety risks that could easily go unnoticed. Additionally, incident investigations were reactive and time-consuming, requiring staff to manually search accounts without a clear starting point.
“We knew things were happening,” he says. “But finding them meant going into individual accounts and looking around. In a district our size, that’s just not practical.”
At the same time, cybersecurity concerns such as password compromise attempts, risky external communications, and the sharing of sensitive information were becoming increasingly common.
Results
Today, Cloud Monitor provides visibility into activity across Microsoft 365 while helping the team proactively address student safety concerns and cybersecurity risks.
“We’ve identified kids—and staff members—who were writing suicide notes,” he says. “We’ve found things in OneDrive that made us uneasy, and we were able to get counselors involved and make sure they got support.”
In several cases, Cloud Monitor alerts revealed students discussing self-harm or expressing suicidal thoughts. The technology team works closely with counselors and administrators to investigate alerts and provide additional context when needed.
“Counselors will call us and ask for more information, and we’ll help them understand what we’re seeing,” he explains. “That partnership didn’t really exist before. Now we can get the right people involved very quickly.”
“Cloud Monitor gives me a good overview of what’s happening across my district. Whether it’s a student safety concern, a compromised account, or sensitive information being shared, I can quickly see where I need to focus my attention instead of spending hours digging through accounts.”
The platform has also helped identify students using VPNs and alternative communication channels. “Students are creative,” he says with a laugh. “They’re always looking for ways around things. Cloud Monitor helps us see those trends so we can respond.”
Cloud Monitor has also become a valuable cybersecurity tool by automating tasks, such as identifying risky activity, monitoring account compromise attempts, and detecting sensitive data exposure.
“I get password compromise alerts all the time,” he explains. “If I see someone trying to access an account from another country, I’ll send that information to our technicians and have the password reset immediately.”
For a district serving thousands of students, the platform’s automated alerts and summaries help make an enormous amount of data manageable.
“Cloud Monitor gives me a good overview of what’s happening across my district,” he says. “I can look at the alerts and quickly understand where I need to focus my attention.”
He believes his investment in Cloud Monitor has more than paid for itself.
“If we save one kid, it’s worth every penny,” he says. “We’ve barely scratched the surface of what Cloud Monitor can do, and it’s already helped us make our schools much safer. If you’re curious, give it a shot.”
Want to learn more about improving your district’s cybersecurity, student safety, and classroom engagement?
Get started with your free Google Workspace and/or Microsoft 365 security and safety audit today.
