How to prevent cheating in online exams: a practical checklist for teachers

The checklist: set up a fair online exam

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   Step 1: Give every student a different paper

   Write more questions than the exam needs, then turn on Random draw from the pool so each student gets a different set (for example 30 of 50). Add Shuffle question order and Shuffle option order. Two students sitting side by side, or messaging each other, now see different questions in a different order. The draw is saved when the attempt starts, so a refresh never changes it. On a sectioned paper, set the draw count on each section.

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   Step 2: Write questions that resist quick look-ups

   Questions that ask students to apply an idea to a new case, read a passage, interpret a figure or solve a numeric problem are much harder to search than definition questions. Numeric questions accept a tolerance, so you can use fresh numbers instead of textbook ones.

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   Step 3: Keep the time tight, or time each question

   Set a Total duration that is enough for a prepared student and not much more. For the strongest control, turn on Time each question individually: each question gets its own countdown, then locks and moves on, and students cannot go back. Use Schedule so everyone writes in the same window; Closes is a hard end for all students.

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   Step 4: Control who can get in

   Make the exam Invite only so students need a 6-character access code as well as the link, or limit it to a list of email addresses (whole school domains work too). Set Max attempts per student to 1, and ask for a roll number or class before the student starts so every result is tied to a real person.

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   Step 5: Turn on proctoring

   Under Proctoring, turn on Track tab-switching and copy-paste. Each time a student leaves the exam tab or app, it is recorded with a time stamp and the student sees a warning. A proctored exam also carries a faint watermark with the student's name, email and attempt number, so a screenshot shared in a group chat points back to whoever took it.

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   Step 6: Add lockdown mode on laptops and desktops

   Lockdown mode asks students to enter fullscreen with one click before the paper opens, covers the paper again if they leave fullscreen until they return, and blocks copy, paste and right-click. Phones cannot be held in fullscreen by any browser, so on phones the tab and app switches are recorded instead.

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   Step 7: Use webcam snapshots only when you need them

   Require webcam takes periodic snapshots (about every 45 seconds) for you to review afterwards. Choose what happens when a student cannot or will not turn the camera on: keep them out until it works, or let them in and flag it in their integrity report. For most class tests, flagging is kinder, because a broken camera should not cost a student the exam.

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   Step 8: Watch the exam live

   Open the live attempt view to see who is writing right now. You can post an announcement, reply to one student, and submit an attempt on a student's behalf if something goes wrong.

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   Step 9: Hold results and answers until everyone is done

   Set Results visibility to After exam ends or When I release, and if you show the answer key, set a release time after the exam closes. Otherwise the first student to finish can pass the answers to everyone still writing. You can also hide the question review entirely so the paper is not copied out of the result page.

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    Step 10: Review the evidence, then decide

    After the exam, each attempt has an integrity rating built from tab switches, fullscreen exits, copy-paste attempts and webcam flags. Filter the results to Clean only or Flagged only and open the integrity report for the details. MegaExams never fails a student automatically: you see the signals and make the call.

What no online exam can detect

Tell students up front

Frequently asked questions