Online exam proctoring keeps raising privacy concerns.
And they’re not going away soon.
As a leader in your educational institution, you absolutely want to respond to these concerns responsibly because online education is not going away either.
In fact, worldwide revenue from online education is projected to grow at a 9.48% CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) from 2023 to 2027, with online university education making up 62% of the market.
That means university leaders will want to respect and balance the interests of many: your students, faculty, budget, and, of course, the laws of the land.
Not an easy task!
So we’re here to help.
In this article, we’ll map out some of the key privacy concerns and offer guidance on how to navigate them with sensitivity while keeping the long-term benefit of all parties in mind.
But first, let’s clarify a key question:
What is online exam proctoring?
Online exam proctoring aims to prevent and detect fraud during remote online exams at two key points in the process:
- Test-taker identification
Using the software and technology of the computer device, the online proctoring system captures the test-taker’s face and ID (e.g., a student card).
Software or, later during review, a trained proctor confirms that the test-taker is indeed the person who is supposed to be taking the test. In the case of a blurry or invalid ID, the test-taker can resubmit their ID after the test is completed.
- Test-taking
During the test, the online proctoring system monitors the test-taker to ensure that no unauthorized support (e.g., books, notes, devices, Internet searches, and so on) is being used to complete the test.
This proctoring can be carried out by the following:
- A trained person watching the webcam feed
- A recording. After the test, the recording by the proctoring software is analyzed by a human with or without the help of artificial intelligence to flag fraudulent activity.
- Automation. The recorded test session is analyzed by algorithms to flag suspicious activity.
Different online proctoring services offer variations on, and hybrids of, these levels of service. Thus, these online proctoring services can range from a simple browser lockdown to a 360-degree webcam scan of the test-taker’s room and the recording of all audio, video, and computer activity data while an automated or human proctor presides remotely.
The popularity of online exam proctoring
Not surprisingly, research shows that online proctoring software is effective at preventing exam fraud. So schools and universities that want to protect the integrity of their certifications and reputations, work with online exam proctoring services.
Furthermore, compared to in-person invigilation, these tools are often significantly more cost-efficient for testing students. At the same time, these tools offer test-takers the flexibility of testing from convenient locations and times.
This win-win value has helped drive the popularity of the tools. In fact, the online exam proctoring market is expected to grow from USD 741.7 million in 2022 to USD 3,881.0 million in 2032, a CAGR of 18.5% from 2023 to 2032. Schools and universities account for almost two-thirds (64%) of that market.
Privacy concerns raised by online exam proctoring
In spite of the widespread use of online proctoring, some students, administrators, and faculty have expressed concerns over privacy. Many of these concerns focus on three questions:
- What data is the proctoring system collecting?
Take for example the 360-degree webcam scan of the test-taker’s surroundings. On the one hand, this scan reveals what, if any, exam support may be present in the test-taker’s space.
On the other hand, the recording also collects a slew of personally identifiable details (e.g., medical, political, religious, racial, ethnic, socio-economic) about the life of the test-taker which are not relevant to the test.
In fact, under the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), some of this information may be classified as sensitive and thus must be handled according to the rigorous conditions of that law.
- Who is seeing the proctoring data?
Depending on the online proctoring service provider, a whole host of people could potentially be seeing and sharing test-taker data.
First, there’s the proctor, who may be viewing the test session live or in recorded form.
Second, if there’s suspicious behavior, an instructor or administrator may be invited to review the data.
Third, if there’s a technical issue, the technicians of the proctoring service provider may also have access to this data. Also, the provider may work with third parties, so they, too, may view the data.
Imagine if there’s a data breach! Throughout this chain of sharing, unknown actors, and potentially bad ones, may access this data.
- How long is the proctoring data being stored?
Different proctoring service providers have different storage arrangements. Clearly, the longer the data is stored, the more vulnerable it is to unauthorized viewing or breach.
Other related questions arise:
- When does the actual recording of the proctoring data begin? Is data collected, for example, several hours before the exam?
- Will the data be exploited for research or commercial gain? For instance, AI models may train on this data to make predictions about exam performance. Or, the data may be used to develop personalized ads.
Sensitive academic leaders recognize that the above-noted concerns are sound, and must be responded to responsibly.
So what do you do?
4 Questions for your potential or existing provider of online exam proctoring
For your peace of mind, get answers to the questions raised by the privacy concerns. Ask your potential or existing provider of online exam proctoring services the following questions:
- Does your service comply 100% with internationally accepted global standards on privacy and security?
If it’s not 100%, what are the exceptions to the standards?
In other words, would you entrust your students’ personal identifiable information (PII) and the reputation of your institution to an online proctoring service that did not treat privacy and security as the highest of priorities?
The following are globally recognized standards of privacy and security your online exam proctoring service needs to comply with:
GDPR: Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation “applies to all companies handling the personal data of EU residents, including companies established outside the EU if they offer goods or services to EU residents or monitor their behaviour.”
PIPEDA, or the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act, is Canada’s privacy law for private-sector organizations. They “must generally obtain an individual’s consent when they collect, use or disclose that individual’s personal information..”
FERPA or the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act in the U.S. affords students who have turned 18 years old or who have entered a post-secondary institution the right “to have access to their education records, … to have the records amended, and … to have some control over the disclosure of personally identifiable information from the education records.”
- What personally identifiable information (PII) of the test-taker is stored by the online proctoring service, and for how long?
As noted earlier, some online proctoring services collect reams of PII from the test-taker’s computer and the test-taking session.
So ask the potential provider for specifics about the volume and type of PII collected, where it’s stored, and for how long. Compare answers to each of these questions with those of other providers.
Remember, data encryption, software barriers, and other safeguards are certainly helpful, but privacy is best protected by limiting the information collected, retained, and shared.
Once you’ve chosen a provider, ensure that your test-takers are clearly informed of the answers to your questions. Clear, timely communication significantly increases the acceptability of the proctoring service and should help diffuse privacy concerns.
- What test-taker information is shared and with whom?
Photo identification is one of the standard ways test-takers are identified. Who, besides the reviewer of the test, sees this crucial identifier? Is it shared with intermediaries? What do you, as a customer of the online proctoring service, see? Is it strictly necessary information or is superfluous information shown?
- Is the online proctoring data used for any purpose other than exam fraud detection?
Any answer other than “no” is a big red flag. Period.
Rest assured, there is good news. We know of exceptional providers who truly respect the spirit and letter of privacy and security practice in online exam proctoring.
If you’d like to learn more, we’d be happy to answer your questions.
Connect with us here!
