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March 5, 2021 07:25 pm

Students Are Easily Cheating 'State-of-the-Art' Test Proctoring Tech

Students are using HDMI cables and hidden phones to cheat on exams administered through invasive proctoring software like Proctorio. From a report: "I've taken online exams cheating and not cheating and they are just about as stressful anyways so fuck it, am I right?" That's what one French student who had cheated on multiple remote exams administered through the popular digital proctoring software Proctorio told Motherboard in a voice message. With the COVID-19 pandemic continuing to rage around the globe and no quick end to remote learning in sight, many students have found themselves taking exams under the watch of proctoring software like Proctorio, which surveils students through algorithmic systems that, among other things, detect eye movements, track keyboard strokes, and monitor audio inputs. Universities sometimes shell out thousands of dollars per exam for Proctorio, which helps at least give the impression that academic integrity is being maintained during remote learning. But for some students using Proctorio and other online proctoring services is invasive and anxiety-inducing, subjecting them and their surroundings to unwarranted surveillance that is difficult to refuse without their studies being negatively affected. Yet, despite the fact that popular online proctoring platforms like Proctorio claim that they use "state-of-the-art technology" and "ensure the total learning integrity of every assessment, every time," students are cheating on their exams anyway. Motherboard spoke to 10 university students from various countries who claimed to have cheated on exams where Proctorio was in place. While their motivations and techniques varied, there was one common denominator: none of them got caught. The relative ease with which the students cheated, and the fact that each student could point to multiple peers who had done the same (one American student estimated that 90 percent of her class had cheated), raises the question of how effective online proctoring software like Proctorio actually is -- and whether it is worth the hefty price tag or the invasion of privacy. "With Proctorio obviously you need to show yourself and your room with the computer's webcam," one Dutch student who had helped a friend cheat on a multiple choice exam told Motherboard. "My friend put a phone on a stand on his keyboard so it couldn't be seen during the room and desk sweep. Then we FaceTimed with me at the other end," she continued. "The phone was at a slant so he could see me and I could see the exam. Then I would just hold up a flashcard with a, b, c, or d." Another French student used a 10-meter HDMI cable that ran from his laptop to a TV screen in another room that mirrored his screen. His friend would then look up the exam answers and send it via WhatsApp to his phone, which was also on the keyboard and out of sight of the webcam. "Worked perfectly and got a good grade," he said.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.


Original Link: http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdot/~3/bpDwocXnj-8/students-are-easily-cheating-state-of-the-art-test-proctoring-tech

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