Google Classroom is a web-based app and the Saturn app is a mobile app that helps student stay organized and connect with their school community. they offer a variety of features, such as the ability to create assignments, grade work and track student progress. Both platforms are designed for students for digital learning. However, they have different purposes. Classroom focuses on academic work, while the Saturn app is more of a Social networking and scheduling app.
Here, I solely like to talk about the perspective of Digital learning. You might be wondering why I’m talking about educational apps for students in this article. Recently, there have been concerns about the privacy implications of using the Saturn app.
It is said that now with the recent update the privacy issue has been addressed and requires secure verification to access. However, I believe that there is already a trusted platform, Google Classroom, that is in use. So why would we need to switch to the untrusted, newly launched Saturn app? Google Classroom does indeed offer more features with the backing of security and privacy. Before skipping directly to “Google Classroom vs Saturn app”
Let’s know the current concern regarding the Saturn app.
Saturn App Concern
Previously before the security update on the Saturn App, anyone could log in.
It’s entirely conceivable that a predator could gather a comprehensive schedule for any student on the application without needing to complete a full login. The application provides information about the location, date, time, and, due to its social features, a roster of all participating students (along with their profile pictures) but now after the update, the app requires a school email for access which is good for privacy concerns. But still, there has been suspicion about the Privacy aspect of it.
The concern of Parents have been making Headlines in the news recently over the Privacy of their children.
Read the original article: Tech expert warns parents about online safety concerns with ‘Saturn’ app
The concern needs to be put into action by practicing safe cybersecurity.
Google Classroom vs Saturn app: Which One is Right for Students?
Now, let’s move on to the primary segment of the discussion, which is the focal point of this article. These are some of the major factors listed before making a decision, let’s delve into the factors at play.
Reputation:
Google Classroom is owned by Google, a well-known respected company whereas the Saturn app is owned by an independent company that does not have the same reputation.
Transparency:
Google Classroom only collects the necessary data to operate like Gmail, name, and address whereas the Saturn app has not made a clear statement about how it will use its data in the future. This has been a suspicious threat for the users.
Privacy Feature:
Google Classroom has a number of privacy features, such as the ability to control who can see your profile and what information you share. Saturn app does not have as many privacy features.
Parental control:
Google Classroom has Parental control features to properly monitor their children’s online activities, unlike the Saturn app. To set up parental controls in Google Classroom, parents need to create a Family Link account and link their child’s Google account to it. Once the account is linked, parents can start setting controls.
Security:
Google Classroom uses industry-based security measures such as encryption to protect the student data that it collects. Saturn app has not been audited for security so it is still not clear how data is collected.
I believe that web application and application security are important topics that should be discussed more widely. There are some specific topics such as Injection attacks, Broken authentication, session management, and many more. Anyway, if you enjoyed reading this article and want to keep yourself updated, then make sure you leave comments and stay connected.
