Administrator Guide: How to Respond to Securly Safety Alerts (Grief, Self-Harm, Blocked Content) – Redlands Christian School

RCS uses Securly to monitor student online activity for safety concerns. When Securly detects potentially harmful content — such as signs of self-harm, grief, or attempts to access blocked websites — it generates an automated alert that arrives as a Zendesk ticket.

These alerts are not standard IT support tickets. They require a specific response protocol depending on the alert type and severity. This guide explains each alert type and what to do when you receive one.

Alert Types at a Glance


Alert Type	What It Means	Urgency
Self-Harm / Grief	Securly detected keywords or patterns in a student's document, search, or chat that may indicate emotional distress, self-harm ideation, or grief.	Review within 1 hour during school hours
Concerning Content	Securly flagged content that doesn't meet the self-harm threshold but still warrants a look — e.g., references to violence, bullying, or distress in school work.	Review within 1 business day
Blocked Activity	A student attempted to access a website blocked by the content filter (e.g., gambling, adult content, anonymous proxies).	Informational — review in batch

Understanding Confidence Levels

Self-harm and grief alerts include a Confidence Level that indicates how likely the content is to represent a genuine concern:


Confidence Level	Meaning	Action
Level 2 (Higher Confidence)	Securly's AI has higher confidence that the content indicates a genuine safety concern.	Immediate review by a counselor or administrator. Notify the student's campus dean or principal.
Level 1 (Lower Confidence)	Content was flagged but may be a false positive — e.g., a student writing about grief in an English essay, researching a health topic, or using figurative language.	Review the flagged content. If clearly academic or benign, no further action needed. If concerning, escalate to a counselor.

Step-by-Step: Responding to Self-Harm / Grief Alerts

Open the alert email or Zendesk ticket. Note the student's name, email, org unit (which tells you the campus and grade), and the confidence level.
Log in to the Securly dashboard to view the full flagged content. The alert email contains a summary, but the dashboard shows the complete document, search, or chat.
Assess the content:
- Is this clearly academic work (essay, health class assignment, creative writing)?
- Does the content contain direct expressions of intent to self-harm?
- Is there a pattern — has this student triggered multiple alerts recently?
If the content appears concerning:
- Notify the student's campus counselor immediately.
- Notify the campus principal or dean.
- The counselor will determine whether to contact the student, parents, or other support services.
- Document the notification in the Zendesk ticket (add an internal note with who was contacted and when).
If the content is clearly benign (academic assignment, false positive):
- Add an internal note to the Zendesk ticket: "Reviewed — academic content, no concern."
- Close the ticket.

Step-by-Step: Responding to Blocked Activity Alerts

Blocked activity alerts are informational. They mean a student tried to visit a site that Securly's content filter blocked. Common categories include gambling, gaming, anonymous proxies, and social media.

Review in batch. These don't require immediate individual responses. Review them periodically (daily or weekly).
Look for patterns:
- Is the same student repeatedly trying to access blocked sites?
- Are multiple students trying to reach the same site? (This may indicate a trend worth discussing with teachers.)
- Is a student using proxy/VPN sites to bypass the filter? (This is a more serious concern — notify the campus dean.)
For repeat offenders: Notify the student's teacher or campus dean so they can address it directly.
Close the ticket after review.

Who to Notify by Alert Type


Alert Type	Primary Contact	Also Notify
Self-Harm / Grief (Level 2)	Campus Counselor (immediately)	Campus Principal or Dean
Self-Harm / Grief (Level 1)	Review first — escalate to Counselor if concerning	—
Concerning Content	Campus Counselor (within 1 business day)	Teacher (if classroom-related)
Blocked Activity	No notification needed for individual incidents	Campus Dean (for repeat offenders or proxy use)

Accessing the Securly Dashboard

To view the full details of any alert:

Go to securly.com and log in with your RCS admin credentials.
Navigate to Aware (for safety alerts) or Filter (for blocked activity).
Search by the student's email address to see their full activity history.

If you don't have access to the Securly dashboard, contact itsupport@redlandschristian.org to request admin access.

Tips for Managing Alert Volume

Don't treat every alert as a crisis. Many Level 1 alerts are false positives triggered by schoolwork. Review calmly and assess.
Use Zendesk views to filter Securly alerts separately from regular IT tickets. Ask IT to set up a dedicated view if you don't have one.
Document your review in the Zendesk ticket — even for false positives. This creates a record that the alert was seen and assessed.
Discuss patterns at staff meetings. If certain alert types are spiking, it may indicate a broader student wellness trend worth addressing.

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