How Candidates Use Technology to Cheat in Online Technical Assessments

Impact of Online Assessments in Technical Hiring

In a digitally-native hiring landscape, online assessments have proven to be both a boon and a bane for recruiters and employers.

The ease and efficiency of virtual interviews, take home programming tests and remote coding challenges is transformative. Around 82% of companies use pre-employment assessments as reliable indicators of a candidate’s skills and potential.

Online skill assessment tests have been proven to streamline technical hiring and enable recruiters to significantly reduce the time and cost to identify and hire top talent.

In the realm of online assessments, remote assessments have transformed the hiring landscape, boosting the speed and efficiency of screening and evaluating talent. On the flip side, candidates have learned how to use creative methods and AI tools to cheat in tests.

As it turns out, technology that makes hiring easier for recruiters and managers – is also their Achilles’ heel.

Cheating in Online Assessments is a High Stakes Problem

With the proliferation of AI in recruitment, the conversation around cheating has come to the forefront, putting recruiters and hiring managers in a bit of a flux.

According to research, nearly 30 to 50 percent of candidates cheat in online assessments for entry level jobs. Even 10% of senior candidates have been reportedly caught cheating.

The problem becomes twofold – if finding the right talent can be a competitive advantage, the consequences of hiring the wrong one can be equally damaging and counter-productive.

As per Forbes, a wrong hire can cost a company around 30% of an employee’s salary – not to mention, loss of precious productive hours and morale disruption.

The question that arises is – “Can organizations continue to leverage AI-driven tools for online assessments without compromising on the integrity of their hiring process? ”

This article will discuss the common methods candidates use to outsmart online assessments. We will also dive deep into actionable steps that you can take to prevent cheating while delivering a positive candidate experience.

Common Cheating Tactics and How You Can Combat Them

1. Using ChatGPT and other AI tools to write code

   Copy-pasting code using AI-based platforms and online code generators is one of common cheat codes in candidates’ books. For tackling technical assessments, candidates conveniently use readily available tools like ChatGPT and GitHub.

   Using these tools, candidates can easily generate solutions to solve common programming challenges such as:

   • Debugging code
   • Optimizing existing code
   • Writing problem-specific code from scratch

   Ways to prevent it

   • Enable full-screen mode
   • Disable copy-and-paste functionality
   • Restrict tab switching outside of code editors
   • Use AI to detect code that has been copied and pasted

2. Enlist external help to complete the assessment

   Candidates often seek out someone else to take the assessment on their behalf. In many cases, they also use screen sharing and remote collaboration tools for real-time assistance.

   In extreme cases, some candidates might have an off-camera individual present in the same environment for help.

   Ways to prevent it

   • Verify a candidate using video authentication
   • Restrict test access from specific IP addresses
   • Use online proctoring by taking snapshots of the candidate periodically
   • Use a 360 degree environment scan to ensure no unauthorized individual is present

3. Using multiple devices at the same time

   Candidates attempting to cheat often rely on secondary devices such as a computer, tablet, notebook or a mobile phone hidden from the line of sight of their webcam.

   By using multiple devices, candidates can look up information, search for solutions or simply augment their answers.

   Ways to prevent it

   • Track mouse exit count to detect irregularities
   • Detect when a new device or peripheral is connected
   • Use network monitoring and scanning to detect any smart devices in proximity
   • Conduct a virtual whiteboard interview to monitor movements and gestures

4. Using remote desktop software and virtual machines

   Tech-savvy candidates go to great lengths to cheat. Using virtual machines, candidates can search for answers using a secondary OS while their primary OS is being monitored.

   Remote desktop software is another cheating technique which lets candidates give access to a third-person, allowing them to control their device.

   With remote desktops, candidates can screen share the test window and use external help.

   Ways to prevent it

   • Restrict access to virtual machines
   • AI-based proctoring for identifying malicious keystrokes
   • Use smart browsers to block candidates from using VMs

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HackerEarth’s AI-powered online proctoring solution is a tested and proven way to outsmart cheating and take preventive measures at the right stage.

With HackerEarth’s Smart Browser, recruiters can mitigate the threat of cheating and ensure their online assessments are accurate and trustworthy.

• Secure, sealed-off testing environment
• AI-enabled live test monitoring
• Enterprise-grade, industry leading compliance
• Built-in features to track, detect and flag cheating attempts

Boost your hiring efficiency and conduct reliable online assessments confidently with HackerEarth’s revolutionary Smart Browser.

Nischal V Chadaga Author 84 Blogs