The Ministry of Education (MOE) has removed the Mobile Guardian app from all students’ learning devices after a global cyber-security breach impacted 13,000 students from 26 secondary schools in Singapore. The decision comes as a precautionary measure following the incident.
Cyber-security breach details
On August 5, the MOE announced that the Mobile Guardian app would be removed from all iPads and Chromebooks to ensure student safety. This action follows reports of some students experiencing difficulties accessing their applications and stored information on their devices on August 4.
Mobile Guardian, an app that helps parents manage their children’s device usage by restricting screen time and access to specific websites and apps, was found to have been compromised. The breach allowed unauthorised access to the platform, affecting customers globally, including those in Singapore. As a result, affected students had their devices remotely wiped, although the MOE confirmed no evidence of student files being accessed.
“We understand that students are naturally concerned and anxious about the incident,” MOE said. The ministry assured that they are working with schools to support the affected students by deploying additional IT roving teams and providing extra learning resources.
Initial technical issues and responses
This security incident is separate from technical issues reported last week, which affected more than 1,000 students from at least five MOE secondary schools. Since July 30, some students have faced problems turning their iPads on or off, connecting to Wi-Fi, and receiving error messages indicating the unavailability of the “Guided Access” app.
MOE attributed these glitches to human error in Mobile Guardian’s configuration. In response to the breach, Mobile Guardian halted its servers to prevent further disruption and is currently investigating the breach, which also impacted users in the United States and Europe.
“This resulted in a small percentage of devices being unenrolled from Mobile Guardian and wiped remotely,” Mobile Guardian stated. Users are advised to contact their local IT administrators to reactivate their devices.
Parental concerns and future steps
This incident marks the second cyber-security breach involving Mobile Guardian in six months. In April, the app’s user management portal in Surrey, Britain, was hacked, leading to a data leak involving parents and teachers’ names and email addresses from five primary schools and 122 secondary schools in Singapore.
Understandably concerned about the latest breach, parents have expressed frustration over losing years’ worth of school notes and assignments. For some students, notes were already lost due to technical issues in late July. The breach has added to their anxiety, with many unsure of the next steps.
Madam Chan, a parent of a student from Raffles Girls’ School (RGS), reported issues with her daughter’s device as early as July 31. Despite the school’s advice to back up notes before a factory reset, connectivity issues prevented many students from doing so, leading to data loss.
Parents like Madam Chan had planned to visit the Apple Store to uninstall the app but now face uncertainty and frustration. “Many parents are frustrated, and we don’t know what to do,” she said. The situation has caused significant stress, with no clear instructions for backing up devices.
Mr. Alex, a parent at St. Andrew’s Secondary School, shared similar concerns. Students there resorted to taking pictures of their notes before factory resets. He highlighted the distraction and disruption caused by these incidents during important revision periods.
At Nan Hua High School, parents like Madam Lee are uncertain about how to help their children. She raised concerns about whether the app’s removal is permanent and if children can download other apps without supervision.
MOE will continue to monitor the situation and explore alternative solutions to ensure the safety and security of students’ devices.
