AI Tool Access Control

Overview

AI Tool Access Control lets you manage which AI tools (ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Claude, Copilot, and 30+ others) students, teachers, and staff can access. Instead of blocking all AI or allowing all AI, you can set granular per-role and per-user policies that match your district's AI acceptable use guidelines.

For example: allow teachers to use ChatGPT and Claude, allow high school students to use Google Gemini only, and block all AI tools for elementary students.

Prerequisites

• KyberGate organization with proxy filtering active (Proxy v32+)
• Admin access to the KyberGate dashboard
• Understanding of your district's AI acceptable use policy

How the Priority Chain Works

AI tool access is evaluated in this order (highest priority first):

1. Per-User Policy — if a specific user has an AI policy assigned, it takes precedence over everything
2. Per-Role Policy — if no per-user policy exists, the policy for the user's role (student, teacher, staff, admin) applies
3. Organization Default — if no role or user policy exists, the org-wide default applies

This means you can set a baseline for all students (e.g., block most AI tools) and then grant exceptions for specific students or classes (e.g., allow AP Computer Science students to use ChatGPT).

Supported AI Tools

KyberGate recognizes and can individually control access to 30+ AI tools, including:

• Chat/Assistant AI: ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Claude, Microsoft Copilot, Perplexity, Pi, Poe, Character.AI, Inflection, You.com
• Image Generation: DALL-E, Midjourney, Stable Diffusion, Adobe Firefly, Leonardo.ai, Ideogram
• Code AI: GitHub Copilot, Replit AI, Cursor, Codeium, Amazon CodeWhisperer
• Writing AI: Grammarly AI, Jasper, Copy.ai, Writesonic, QuillBot, Wordtune
• Academic AI: Wolfram Alpha, Photomath, Socratic, Khan Academy AI (Khanmigo)
• Other: Runway ML, ElevenLabs, Synthesia, D-ID, HeyGen

New AI tools are added to the detection list regularly.

Steps

Step 1: Navigate to AI Tool Policies

Log in to the KyberGate dashboard. Go to Settings → Filtering → AI Tools.

Step 2: Set Organization Default

Choose the default stance for your entire organization:

• Block All AI Tools — no AI tools are accessible unless explicitly allowed
• Allow All AI Tools — all AI tools are accessible unless explicitly blocked
• Custom — choose which tools are allowed/blocked individually

Most schools start with Block All and then allow specific tools for specific roles.

Step 3: Configure Per-Role Policies

Click on each role tab (Student, Teacher, Staff, Admin) to set role-specific AI policies:

1. Select the role (e.g., "Teacher")
2. For each AI tool, choose Allow, Block, or Inherit (uses org default)
3. Click Save

Example configuration:

• Students: Block all except Khan Academy AI and Wolfram Alpha
• Teachers: Allow ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and all academic AI tools
• Staff: Inherit from org default (block all)
• Admins: Allow all

Step 4: Configure Per-User Exceptions

For individual user exceptions:

1. Go to Users → find the user → AI Tools tab
2. Toggle specific tools to Allow or Block
3. Per-user settings override role policies

Use this for individual accommodations, AP classes, or specific project needs.

Step 5: Review AI Usage Reports

Go to Reports → AI Tool Usage to see:

• Which AI tools are being used and by whom
• Usage trends over time
• Blocked attempt counts (students trying to access blocked AI tools)
• Top AI tools by usage

How Teachers Can Request Access

Teachers who need access to an AI tool that is currently blocked can:

1. Go to teachers.kybergate.com → Settings → Request AI Tool Access
2. Select the AI tool they need
3. Provide a reason (e.g., "Need ChatGPT for AP English essay review lesson")
4. Submit the request

Admins receive the request under Settings → AI Tools → Access Requests and can approve or deny with one click. Approved requests can be set to expire after a date or remain permanent.

Tips

• Start with Block All and gradually allow tools as your district develops AI guidelines
• Use per-role policies as the baseline and per-user exceptions for special cases
• Monitor the AI Usage report monthly to understand how AI tools are being used in your schools
• When a new AI tool launches and students start trying to access it, it will appear in the "Blocked Attempts" report so you can decide whether to allow it
• AI Tool Access Control works alongside your regular content filtering — even if an AI tool domain is allowed by the content filter, the AI-specific policy can still block it
• Consider creating a brief AI acceptable use addendum to your existing AUP that references these controls

FAQ

Q: What happens when a student tries to access a blocked AI tool? A: They see a KyberGate block page explaining that AI tool access is restricted by school policy. The page shows which AI tools are available to them (if any).

Q: Can I allow ChatGPT for one class period and block it for others? A: Yes. Use a Teacher Override in KyberClassroom to temporarily allow ChatGPT for a specific class. Or create a bell schedule period with a policy that allows it.

Q: Does this detect AI tools embedded in other websites? A: KyberGate blocks access to AI tool domains. If an AI tool is embedded within a non-blocked website (e.g., an AI chatbot on a news site), it may not be detected. Domain-level blocking catches the vast majority of student AI usage.

Q: How often is the AI tool list updated? A: New AI tools are added to the detection list weekly. You can also manually add custom domains under AI Tools → Custom Domains.

Q: Can students use AI tools at home? A: AI Tool Access Control is enforced whenever the device routes through KyberGate's proxy. If the device is off-network and in fail-open mode, AI access is not restricted at the proxy level. The Chrome extension continues to enforce AI blocks regardless of network status.