Virtual Proctoring

How Does Virtual Proctoring Work

Ensure the right person takes the right training every time

Over the past decade, the demand and need for online training has continued to increase. More and more companies choose to bring in contract-based workers and operate during non-standard work hours. These shifting company needs mean that worker training has shifted, too. Online courses have made onboarding and training processes more efficient, convenient, and cost-effective, but this digital solution has also made portions of training uncertain. When workers complete training away from a classroom, how can companies be sure the people taking the training are who they say they are? The answer is virtual proctoring.

What is Virtual Proctoring?

Virtual proctoring is the use of web-based technology to supervise a task or activity, including online courses, exams, and form completions. By using facial detection and recognition technology, this software allows you to verify the identity of the learner and that the learner follows the session rules. In fact, you can monitor the session to verify that the learner is engaged throughout the activity. Because virtual proctoring uses the capabilities of the learner’s web browsers and webcameras, you do not need to install additional software.

Privacy for Virtual Proctoring

During the session, Integrity Advocate uses Application Program Interface (API) technology to request permission from the user to use the user’s webcam for the purposes of verifying their identity and participation. At the beginning of the process, the system will ask the user to present a government-issued photo ID and alongside their face to the webcam. An image of the driver’s license is then digitally stored in an encrypted format to verify the user’s identity. Once verified, the encrypted image file is permanently deleted from the database, and all encrypted driver’s license images are purged within 24 hours of the course being completed.

The Potential

Save Time and Money

Online courses and orientations allow workers to complete training before they arrive on their work sites. This not only minimizes the loss of productive time, but it also decreases the time it takes to prepare and organize training content, book training facilities, and grade exams. With virtual proctoring, you have the ability to supervise worker training from anywhere without the cost and hassle of in-person sessions.

One BIS Training client saved millions of dollars by taking their orientation online with virtual proctoring. This sample budget comparison, modeled after a client’s project, illustrates the possible cost savings.

Estimated Costs for Instructor-Led Orientation

Approximate Total Cost: $5,000,000

Trainer Costs

Facility Costs

Productivity Loss

Savings Using Virtual Proctoring

Estimated Cost Savings with Virtual Proctoring: $4,715,000

Cost Savings

Estimated cost savings based on a development and implementation cost of $285,000 versus the projected $5,000,000 for the onsite orientation.

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Ethics Enforcement

As the user’s webcam records the session, the software spots deceptive behaviors displayed during the session.

Virtual proctoring flags deceptive behavior during training sessions. Examples of such behavior include a user placing images in front of the camera or a new person appearing after the user showed their ID. In monitoring and flagging these types of behaviors, the virtual proctoring software helps you identify and prevent unethical behavior early in a worker’s career. When the software identifies questionable behavior, system administrators then review the flags to clear or follow up on them.

As you can see in the data below, virtual proctoring software will catch problems with administrative tasks, participation, and deception.

Session Data Summary*

Verified Sessions (no issues)

Administrative Flags** (majority cleared)

Participation Flags***

Deceptive Flags

*Taken from a sample size of just over 15,000 participants across five courses in August 2016
**ID or participant image could not be verified
***Participant failed to follow the rules of the session

Legal Protection

With online training, usernames and passwords are not enough to confirm the identity of users or verify participation. However, virtual proctoring makes it possible to comply with regulatory training requirements. If a workplace incident does occur, your company possesses recorded proof that the individual underwent and completed the required training, providing a defense against potential litigation.

Due Diligence

The importance of safety compliance is nothing new to HSE professionals, but policies and training alone are not enough to prevent workplace incidents and accidents. Meta-analytical investigations have shown that the level of employee engagement in safety training is directly related to performance within organizations. Virtual proctoring software ensures that workers are engaged with online training, resulting in enhanced safety performance overall.

Partnerships Matter

As one of six finalists of the 2016 OSPA (Outstanding Security Performance Awards) in the Best Integrator/Solution Provider category, Integrity Advocate brings another layer of security to the services BIS already offers clients.

We were intentional in the use of a third-party identity verification and proctoring provider so the results could be reviewed by an objective entity outside of BIS and your company. This also eliminates the centralization of personal information, thus maintaining compliance with global legislative privacy requirements.

Together with Integrity Advocate, BIS offers the ability for any customer who purchases a course on our system to upgrade their training experience to a proctored version of that course.

“An online course that does not identify the participant does not meet the minimum standard.”

Alberta OHS

(Ask the Expert)

“Identity verification and proctoring technology is particularly critical when organizations use web-enabled educational materials as part of risk control strategies that seek to ensure that employees are competent in regulatory critical activities (e.g., standards of business conduct, financial accounting requirements, reporting requirements, disclosure, health and safety or environmental requirements).”

IOSH ALBERTA

Industry Best Practice

“Employers must be able to show both that the training was adequate, based on training content, and that the employee received the training.”

OSHA Publication

2254-09R 2015

“Court cases such as R. v. Rose’s Well Services Ltd. illustrate that employers need to ensure that they do more than provide training access. These cases show that there is a need to ensure that the personnel requiring the training are the ones receiving it.”

Robert Day

Licensed Investigator and Paralegal

“When training is delivered online an employer needs to confirm that the individual taking the training is the intended recipient, and that the employee did not just click play and walk away, or have others complete the training or answer comprehension testing questions for them.”

Jason Kraft

Occupational Health and Safety Administration (Officer)

A Few of Our Partners and Clients