NSW Education launches pilot of expanded eSafety reporting tools in 40 secondary schools

The New South Wales Department of Education has begun a 12-week pilot program in 40 secondary schools to trial streamlined reporting pathways for cyberbullying incidents that escalate to threats or image-based abuse. The initiative, developed in partnership with the eSafety Commissioner, provides school wellbeing staff with a direct referral channel to the Commissioner's investigation team and to NSW Police where material meets threshold criteria for criminal conduct. Participating schools will train designated staff in evidence preservation and will test a standardised incident-severity rubric designed to triage reports for internal resolution, eSafety intervention or law enforcement referral. The pilot responds to findings from the 2025 Anti-Bullying Rapid Review, which identified inconsistent escalation practices and delays in multi-agency coordination as barriers to effective intervention.

Real-time detection positioned at the point of contact removes the delay inherent in report-and-triage models. Guardii intercepts harmful direct-message exchanges as they occur, blocking or flagging grooming, sextortion, child sexual abuse material including AI-generated content, and cyberbullying before the material reaches its target or embeds in peer networks. For schools managing complex incidents, the platform's pattern-based reporting provides the context and timeline needed to meet evidentiary thresholds for eSafety or police referral, enabling faster escalation to the appropriate authority while reducing the investigative burden on wellbeing staff who may lack forensic training.