Online training is increasingly common, but cheating is a significant problem. Many different technologies can detect and deter cheating, including anti-plagiarism software, online proctoring services that monitor students remotely during e-tests, and plagiarism detection tools that compare student research papers with larger literary databases to identify matches. However, these technologies can raise questions about data privacy and intellectual property and can seem to engender a culture of surveillance in education. In addition, anti-cheating technology often involves expensive hardware and services, which can raise the cost of education.
A number of studies have explored the use of various anti-cheating technologies. For example, one study investigated the effectiveness of a computer-based anti-cheating system that used facial recognition and comparison, mouse movement detection, and keystroke monitoring to detect cheating in an online course (Hornby & Sutton, 2021). Another study examined the use of a facial analysis tool that can assess a student’s posture during a test and can predict if they are lying during an exam (Li et al., 2018).
Some studies have also analyzed how high-tech devices such as micro Bluetooth-powered earbuds and invisible smartwatches can be used to help students cheat during exams. Other studies have compared the performance of students who take a class with and without an online proctoring system. In a small experimental study, teachers taught the same online Chinese language course in two parallel classes at the same time: one class was proctored and the other was not. The results showed that the OICIE-ACS system was effective in reducing students’ cheating during the online Chinese language test.