As schools across the nation shift to online learning amid the coronavirus pandemic, some educators are trying out new mobile apps, free trials of software, and other tools that promise to enhance or at least support their efforts.

To that end, experts offer some advice: Be cautious. As they work to move instruction online, administrators and other educators should not deprioritize privacy.

“You obviously have all of the privacy concerns that carry over from the use of ed tech generally,” says Amelia Vance, director of education privacy for the Future of Privacy Forum. “Is this company using data in an inappropriate way? Is this a privacy-protected product? Does the school have a data governance policy? When is information going to be deleted? Who has access to that information? Do people just have what information they need to do their job and no more? Because every additional person who has access to information can increase the risk that that information is shared and inappropriately or breached.”

The current surge in online learning will likely contribute to dramatic growth in uncontrolled, unregulated use of technology by educators in K–12 schools and higher education, Vance says. Educators typically turn to those options when there is not a centralized alternative available from their school, she says.