Urgent Action Required by Users of E2BN Protex Filtering

[simon_e2bn]

URGENT: Changes to Your School's Internet Filtering

 

 

URGENT: Google to withdraw nosslsearch option.

 

E2BN were informed by Google a few weeks ago that they are planning to withdraw the nosslsearch option that Protex and other school web filtering services use in order to filter Google searches and to blank inappropriate image thumbnails in Google image search. The effect of this is to force all Google searches to be encrypted between the browser and the Google servers using https. The latest date we have from Google for the change is mid January 2015. Since we heard this we have been busy investigating the effect this would have on Protex filtering and how we can provide a solution.

 

What to do if your Local Authority provides Protex filtering

 

Local Authorities have already been alerted and should be contacting the schools that they support.

 

However, all schools and academies that use Protex must install a ProtexRootCA certificate on every device that accesses the Internet. The required certificate is available from http://protex.e2bn.org/certs together with installation instructions and FAQ http://protex.e2bn.org/cms/help/sslcerts/86.html

What to do if you use ProtexLocal

E2BN will be providing a free upgrade to ProtexLocal. Please contact your reseller for more information or if your support is provided by E2BN then we will be contacting you shortly.

 

You will be required to install a ProtexRootCA certificate on every device that connects to the Internet. The required certificate is available from http://protex.e2bn.org/certs with installation instructions.

 

All users of Protex

We recommend that all users of Protex install the certificates as soon as possible. We expect that Google will switch nosslsearch off on the 14th January. However, Google may take this action ahead of schedule.

 

What to do if your school uses a different filtering service

As this change by Google affects all filtering products, schools not using Protex (either ProtexLocal or via their Local Authority) should urgently consult with their filtering provider regarding this issue.

 

 

For more information go to: http://protex.e2bn.org