Quizzes: Prevent Cheating by Limiting Access to Quiz Only

(4)
When a student is taking a password protected quiz, the student should not be allowed to browse other areas of Canvas. For example, the student may log in to Canvas on another tab or another electronic device (deliberate cheating). When the student logs in at the same time he/she is taking the password protected quiz, the additional logon should automatically route the student to the quiz only.
 

🔎 This idea has been archived. While this idea isn't open for comments, it is an important part of Instructure’s idea conversations and development process. Contributions like this are valuable as Instructure prioritizes work on new or existing features.

44 Comments
asatkins
Community Novice

I agree, and I have Smiley Wink I know how hard it is to get attention for an idea that is sort of stuck 'in the middle' of the voting pack Smiley Happy

asatkins
Community Novice

Yay, we're up past 100! It doesn't guarantee anything, but hopefully Canvas will decide it's feasible Smiley Happy

pmead1
Community Novice

I coordinate one of the assessment centers at Salt Lake Community College.  We have 185 HP Thin Clients in 6 rooms.  I have Respondus loaded on about 35% of my computers, but the others are older models that do not have enough storage to allow the program to reside on the machines.  We also need to use our computers to access material on the internet and other internet based testing sites.  For scheduling purposes we simply cannot dedicate some of our computers only to Canvas-they all need to be able to do everything. Likewise re configuring computers between testing periods is impractical.

We have tightened the security on many of the browsers and sites we use however to make these other testing sites function some of the most restrictive security cannot be implemented.

Canvas is a great program that allows instructors to put reference material and practice tests all in once place for students to use.  I am concerned however that instructors do not realize that material can often be accessed during a quiz by students, when the instructors intend that no reference material be used.

It would make my responsibilities easier if there were a feature in Canvas, which, while a student is logged into a password protected quiz, would detect if that student attempted to open any new tabs, webpages, browsers or any other program.  If the feature detected such action it would lock the student out of the at quiz until reset by a proctor or instructor.  It would also be useful if this feature could be enabled or disabled by an administrator.

jsparks
Instructure Alumni
Instructure Alumni

Good morning everyone,

Thank you for the great discussion on this feature idea.  Features liked a locked-down browser or limited browsing during a learning activity--like a test--are things we discuss.  We have partners that provide solutions for these features in some form, partners like Respondus or ProctorU.  We take security seriously and are thinking about ways to enhance security for a quiz/test, but developing our own locked-down browser is not among them. Thank you for sharing your concerns; we will take them all into consideration for our Modern Quizzing Engine. For now, we will archive this conversation as we will not develop this specific idea in the near future.

Kind regards,

Jason

asatkins
Community Novice

Hey Deactivated user​,

Unless I missed the boat on this, I don't think most people are asking for a locked down browser. That is actually the piece my school likes the least about Respondus (that it is a separate browser). I, at least, am really just looking for the student's Canvas account to not be able to log on to other Canvas pages (anywhere they use their account, not browser specific) while a quiz that is marked 'restrict access' or whatever is open. Is that still outside of the scope?

Our school looked at Respondus, but it has features we can't use (like requiring an ID - our students are K-12) and has a ton of things that are going to make support miserable and we don't care about. We'd love the way-simplified version to be built into Canvas.

twaite
Community Novice

Hello Jason,

We use the Respondus Lockdown browser and are still seeing issues. Students will bring in cell phones and log into the Canvas app while taking a test in Respondus. A lockdown browser cannot prevent students from logging in to other areas of Canvas with other electronic devices. The described feature would prevent that. Is there other ways to prevent such security holes? The above feature would be an option to select if the instructor so desires and not mandatory for all tests. Consequently, it would be a feature that provide an optional security coverage which lockdown browsers and other measures cannot cover. 

jsparks
Instructure Alumni
Instructure Alumni

Hello  @asatkins  and  @twaite 

We are looking into a variety of ideas on enhanced security in a quiz/test/etc. We can't prevent students from using separate devices to search for answers. We will share more as we approach the release of these features in the coming future.

Kind regards,

Jason

twaite
Community Novice

Jason,

We realize that students cannot be prevented from using separate electronic devices. However, it is a well known security loophole and we are trying to find practical solutions to such problems. We believe that this feature would be a solution. We sincerely hope that you will take a look at it in the very near future. We are interested in learning what the Modern Quizzing Engine will bring and especially what the timeframe of such a release is.

Renee_Carney
Community Team
Community Team
  Idea is currently in Product Radar Learn more about this stage...

Boekenoogen
Community Contributor

This will be a great tool if Instructure can make it work.  

twaite
Community Novice

What is the status of this feature? Is it still on the Product Radar or has it move beyond? Is it expected to be implemented?

ekc13b
Community Novice

I agree that this will be a very useful feature, especially in our Testing Centers, to prevent cheating. However, it does need to have the option to be disabled, because there are plenty of instructors who allow the use of online materials during exams.

Renee_Carney
Community Team
Community Team

The Radar idea stage has been removed from the Feature Idea Process.  You can read more about why in the blog post Adaptation: Feature Idea Process Changes.

 

This change will only impact the stage sort of this idea and will not change how it is voted on or how it is considered during prioritization activities.  This change will streamline the list of ideas 'open for voting', making it easier for you to see the true top voted ideas in one sort, here.

thompsli
Community Champion

While you can't possibly keep students from using a separate device to look for answers outside of Canvas (since there's no reasonable way for Canvas to detect that), many sites (such as Google) have an option to revoke sign-ins from other devices to your account. Sites such as Netflix also have a way to detect and limit simultaneous logins and restrict how many devices are using an account at a given time. I believe those are the kinds of features being asked for here, since that's something Canvas could logically do based on the fact that other sites do it.

This feature could be coded to revoke all other active sign-ins (as Google lets you do manually) and prevent new sign-ins until the quiz is submitted, or refuse to let other devices use that login while a quiz in a progress (as Netflix does if you go over your simultaneous device quota). 

Steven_S
Community Champion

Adding this feature to new quizzes would be an important compliment to integrating with security LTI's like lockdown browser.  This is important, because even with lockdown browser, some students are using a second device to log into canvas and copy answers from other parts of the course. The security LTIs prevent cutting and pasting, but they don't stop students from using other devices.  The single easiest source to copy answers from is the course itself.  Cheating from all other sources can be limited by using questions that do not return easy answers from google, and timing the quiz.  The course canvas site, with its easier access to answers in the course content, needs to be off-limits to complete the security.

 

While in the middle of taking a quiz that is restricted to a security LTI, the student should see only a warning message when they attempt to log into the course through canvas separate from the security LTI (on either mobile devices or other computers).  Any students who log in during an ongoing quiz without that security LTI, should be notified that their attempt to re-enter the course has been logged and reported to the instructor, and that they can resume the course on their own as soon as they complete the quiz that is in progress in the appropriate security LTI. It should also include a button to "click here to ask your instructor to conclude the current quiz attempt."  Timed quizzes will already conclude on their own, and a student initiated notification to the instructor could include an option to moderate by concluding the ongoing quiz attempt.  Until the ongoing quiz concludes, everything except the warning message should be hidden from student view.

 

Also, students who attempt to open multiple instances of the quiz while using the security LTI should have to chose which instance to cancel before they are allowed to proceed in either instance.  Students who try to do this (to get around view one question at a time) already end up losing responses from all but one window.  While they should not be allowed to cheat by bypassing the rules, there should be a warning displayed. For example, "In order to re-enter a secure quiz in this window your ongoing attempt will be closed and re-displayed here.  Unsaved content may be lost. Click below to continue, or close this window to return to your ongoing attempt."  Regardless of the choice, the activity should be logged for the instructor.

tim_kato
Community Contributor

When taking a proctored quiz, students should only be able to open it on one device at a time. We would like Canvas to be smarter, and are hoping the New Quiz engine could be improved to limit students to one active instance of a given quiz attempt at a time, open in one browser on one device at a time. It should be ok to close the quiz and re-open elsewhere, but it should not be ok to have it open in two places at once.

 

Examples:

  • We have had multiple instances at UBC of a student lending their device to a classmate and forgetting to log out. We then have both students open an exam, from different devices, but logged into the same Canvas account. One student then loses all of "their" work. While we acknowledge the students are arguably at fault for this mistake, it could be avoided by improvements to Canvas
  • A student could open a quiz on two devices, complete the quiz on one device, then have the timer run out on the other device. We have not tested this thoroughly but can imagine this will also cause problems

 

We are struggling to understand the benefit of being able to open the same attempt of a quiz and work on it from multiple devices, since we understand the data is only saved from one of the open instances of the quiz attempt, and any others are lost. We would like to see this in Classic Quizzes as well, but understand most development is focused on New Quizzes.

 

Thanks, Tim Kato, University of British Columbia

Kelvin_Dean
Community Contributor

Next time, you need to create a New Quiz from the Assignments page, not the Quizzes page, so that you can use the Load this tool in a new tab feature and show only the quiz window, as shown below.

Load New Quiz in a new tab

Steven_S
Community Champion

Tim Kato wrote:

  • A student could open a quiz on two devices, complete the quiz on one device, then have the timer run out on the other device. We have not tested this thoroughly but can imagine this will also cause problems

Yes, the timer starts as soon as the student logs in and continues running even if they log out.  This is important for security, because there would be no point to the timer if students could pause it by logging out.  I put a warning in all timed 1-attempt exams that advises students of the time limit and that they only have one attempt. 

Steven_S
Community Champion

It is interesting that new quizzes can be turned into external assignments, but how does "load this tool in a new tab" stop students from opening other browser windows or tabs for access to canvas and switching back and forth?  Having canvas detect that a quiz is in progress and restrict access to resources that could be used to cheat would improve quiz security.

tim_kato
Community Contributor

Thanks Steven Schwamenfeld for the insight! Yes, we want the timer to keep running if the student logs out, but what we don't want is for the student to be able to open the quiz (often an exam) from a second location simultaneously (whether intentionally or unintentionally) . The timer should stay as is and keep running regardless if the exam is open or not, fully agree with you.