How do I block Windows Applications?

Securly has released a new update for the Classroom Windows Agent, version 1.1.8.18. This update introduces a limited version of Application Blocking.

Pre-UI Application Blocking System

Although initially planned for release in version 9.4, the full Application Blocking feature has been delayed to ensure a high-quality user interface (UI). As an interim solution, Securly has collaborated with Dyknow to identify the top 20 most allowed and blocked applications. A list of applications has been created that can be managed through the Block List and Site Lock features by using specially defined, non-existent URLs. When these URLs are detected by the Securly Classroom Windows Agent, they trigger application blocking or allowance as if a full Application Blocking plan were in place. This is a temporary measure until the complete UI is released in version 9.5.

Example Use Case

If a teacher finds Minecraft distracting, they can add "cr-minecraft.securly.com" to the block list to block all known versions of Minecraft. Conversely, if a lesson plan requires Minecraft EDU, adding the same URL to the Site Lock will allow only that application, blocking all others.

List of temporary application URLs

The full list of temporary applications we are supporting in this version can be found below. (Note that the final version will include hundreds more in our full list of applications).

A subtle but important note is that if you start a Site Lock to a collection with "youtube.com" and "cr-msteams.securly.com" but don’t include "cr-webbrowsers.securly.com", students will not be able to get to access the URLs because no web browsers are allowed. As administrators, it is probably in everyone’s best interest to create collections and block lists with these special URLs and promote use that way until we have a more reasonable user experience.