Can Myndr also filter other extensions?

The Myndr plugin cannot always filter other extensions effectively.

But that is not the only reason why you'd better not just let students install extensions. Inform yourself about the risks and think carefully about whether it is worth the possible consequences.

Children are inventive! They come up with the most wonderful discoveries and are not afraid to try new things. They regularly discover really fun, educational or interesting new extensions for the browser, and they love to share that discovery quickly with their friends and classmates. That can lead to wonderful new experiences.

Malware

But just like on the rest of the internet, among all those great extensions there are also a lot of less pleasant things. In February 2020, cybersecurity company Duo discovered 500 malware extensions in the Google Chrome Web Store. Google immediately promised to check extensions more thoroughly. But in July 2020, researchers discovered malware packaged in extensions that had been downloaded 32 million times. Google removed more than 70 extensions from the Chrome Web Store. Less than six months later, in December 2020, another study again showed that the browsers of millions of people were infected by malware packaged in “fun” extensions for Facebook and Instagram, for example.
These are not the only examples, and most likely not the last.

Those extensions steal users' personal data such as name, date of birth, gender, address, email address, login details, browsing history and interests, but also uploaded photos.

Most children cannot properly assess the risks and possible consequences of this data theft. So think carefully about whether you can and want to let your students carry this responsibility.

Proxies

Besides malware, it is also possible to install so-called proxies as an extension. These make sure that all measures arranged at network level within the school are completely bypassed. The school's firewall, for example, does not work on internet traffic that goes through a proxy. All measures taken by the trusted internet provider are also sidelined by proxies. And here too, a lot of private data of the user, i.e. students, is collected and sold to the highest bidder. The only reason this is not called malware is that the terms and conditions state that this data is collected.

Games

Of course, there are also really fun games available as extensions. These don't carry major risks, but students can of course easily get distracted by such a temptingly fun game beckoning from a corner of the screen!

Filtering

Unfortunately, the Myndr plugin cannot filter out all of these things. Fortunately, the plugin does filter a lot of malware and proxies. It can do that because they contact a website. But cybercriminals are inventive and keep using new techniques to steal data. That also means the solution usually takes a while, so there is a period in which new malware techniques or proxies are not filtered. And history teaches us that sneaky tricks can also take place that are only discovered after many years.

Offline games, i.e. games that don't connect to the internet, unfortunately cannot be filtered by the Myndr plugin at all.

Independence and inventiveness!

It is fun and good to encourage children to explore independently. As a teacher, you know better than anyone how inventive they are, especially when they work together.

Instead of always giving students complete freedom to install extensions, you can also handle it differently. Organise a vote for the very best extension, or talk about an extension you find useful and let students suggest extensions themselves. Then have your IT administrator take a look and, if appropriate, add them to the list of allowed extensions. That way it stays fun and safe!

This is how you make sure students can't just install extensions.

Updated on: 03/11/2026