Central Florida schools warn about new 'Saturn' app

LAKE MARY, Fla. - Seminole County Schools were the first in our area to tell parents to watch out for the Saturn app. Some local school districts have blocked access to it on their networks. Saturn bills itself as an app that helps high schoolers navigate the complexities of their school day, though it's available for students ages twelve and up.

The app lets them organize their class schedules and activities, connect with their classmates, and also share their schedules and information. Seminole County Schools has warned that anyone who signs up for an account can see all the information for everyone else in that school.

Tech expert Tom Jelneck said parents should watch out. "I get communities wanting to build and put people together, that's really what social media does," he said, "but when it comes to this kind of stuff, I don't get it. I don't understand why we'd want to share schedules with other students in our classrooms."

Saturn's website states that parents and teachers can’t register for the app, students only. The district said the app uses students’ phone numbers, Snapchat accounts or school emails to create accounts.

Jelneck said it was a system ripe for exploitation. "It's taking that privacy you think you have, and expanding that block to let everyone see everything."

The app is available for students, nationwide. Districts across central Florida have taken steps against the Saturn app. Seminole, Brevard, and Volusia counties sent warnings to parents. Volusia, Seminole and Brevard counties have also taken the extra step of blocking Saturn across devices owned by the district and their networks.

Parents said they'd heed the warnings. "It sounds like there's a lot of identifying information," said Sarah Solorzano, a Seminole County parent, "that I wouldn't want random people to be downloading this app to know where my kids are going to be at all times."

Saturn's developers said their guidelines prohibited illegal activity, and they worked with law enforcement to address problems quickly.