What is exam malpractice?
Examination malpractice is a breach of the rules governing an examination, whether it happens before, during or after the sitting. A candidate copying from the person beside them is only one example. A staff member who leaks a paper is committing exam malpractice too, as is an outsider who sits the exam in someone else’s place or an evaluator who changes marks for money.
Indian university regulations and exam boards often call this unfair means in examination, and an unfair means committee often handles the cases. In the US, people usually say exam cheating, and cases tend to come under an academic integrity or student conduct policy. Whatever the name, the idea is the same: a breach of exam rules that is investigated and decided under a published process.
Forms of examination malpractice
If you group the forms of examination malpractice by when they happen, it’s easier to match each one with a prevention control.
Before the exam
- Paper leaks. Someone gets unauthorized access to the question paper before the sitting. Because it affects every candidate, this is the most damaging form. Our guide explains how to stop an exam paper leak.
- Impersonation. A candidate arranges for another person to sit the exam.
- Registration and eligibility fraud. False documents or attendance records, or registering for an exam the candidate isn’t eligible for.
- Pressure on staff. Attempts to influence invigilators, examiners or exam office staff.
During the exam
- Unauthorized material. Notes, books or other written material taken into the hall or kept near the screen.
- Unauthorized devices. Phones, smartwatches, earpieces and other electronic aids.
- Copying and collusion. One candidate copying from another, or candidates helping one another.
- Outside help. Someone feeding answers to a candidate, either in person or remotely.
- Disruption. Behavior that disturbs other candidates or interferes with how the exam is run.
After the exam
- Script tampering. Swapping, adding to or changing answer books.
- Influencing evaluation. Putting identifying marks on scripts, or approaching evaluators.
- Result manipulation. Changing marks or grades in the records.
Malpractice in online examinations
Online exams bring forms of their own, such as AI tools, remote-access software that hands control of the screen to someone else, a second device out of the camera’s view, screen overlays and virtual machines. Our institution guide to how to cheat on online exams describes each method in general terms and explains how it gets detected.
Unfair means in examination: rules in India
Most Indian universities set out their unfair means rules in examination regulations or ordinances. The rules usually list which acts count as unfair means and what powers invigilators and the chief superintendent have in the hall. They also cover how to write an incident report, how a case reaches the unfair means committee and what range of penalties applies. Institutions differ, so check your own university’s current regulations and any directions from your affiliating body.
Nationally, the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024 deals with unfair means in specified public examinations run by central bodies. Its target is organized malpractice such as paper leaks. Whether it applies to your exams, and how, depends on who conducts them, so check the current text and get legal advice.
Whichever rules apply, a few principles keep a case fair. Write the incident report at the time and preserve the evidence. The candidate should be told and given a hearing, the committee should decide with reasons, and there should be a route to appeal.
Examination malpractice in Nigeria and elsewhere
In Nigeria and much of West Africa, “examination malpractice” is also the standard term, and it comes up often in connection with national school-leaving and entrance examinations. Nigeria has a national law on examination malpractice, so check the current statute and the examining body’s rules for details. Other countries use other names for the same problem, such as academic misconduct in the UK and Australia. The forms it takes and the ways to prevent it are much the same everywhere.
Why exam cheating happens
A handful of causes lie behind most exam cheating, and prevention works best when it tackles each of them.
- High stakes. Temptation grows when a single exam decides a degree, a rank or a job.
- Opportunity. Supervision is weak, every candidate gets the same paper, or the paper passes through many hands.
- Organized networks. Leaks and impersonation are often run for money by groups rather than by individual students.
- Unclear rules. Candidates don’t know what’s allowed, particularly when it comes to devices and AI tools.
- Weak consequences. Deterrence fades when cases are rarely followed through.
How to prevent malpractice in examination
Preventing malpractice costs less than punishing it, and it’s fairer. Put controls in place at every stage.
- Protect the paper. Restrict who can see it, keep it sealed until the sitting and log each access. For online candidates, digital delivery means no printed paper needs transporting.
- Vary the paper. Pull questions from a bank and randomize questions and options, which makes copying and shared answers less useful.
- Seat candidates thoughtfully. In halls, keep likely collaborators apart.
- Verify identity. Check ID and face at the start, and keep checking through the session in online exams.
- Supervise to the stakes. Assign trained invigilators in halls and choose an assurance level for online exams. Our exam security guide lays out a layered plan.
- Track answer books. Record attendance and the movement of answer books, and digitize scripts with a chain of custody.
- Mark anonymously. Strip candidate identity from scripts during evaluation.
- Publish the rules. Explain to candidates in plain language what’s allowed, what’s monitored and what happens in a malpractice case.
How to handle a malpractice case fairly
A fair malpractice process protects the institution just as much as the candidate, and a decision that cuts corners is easy to overturn on appeal.
- Record the incident at the time. The invigilator or reviewer writes down what they observed, when and where, and keeps any material or recording.
- Let the candidate finish where possible. Unless the rules say otherwise, let the candidate complete the exam, so they aren’t left with nothing if no malpractice is found later.
- Review the evidence. A trained person examines it in context. A raised flag or a suspicion doesn’t amount to a finding.
- Tell the candidate. Explain the allegation and share the evidence they need to respond.
- Hear the candidate. Give them a fair opportunity to explain, either in writing or in person.
- Decide with reasons. The committee records its finding, the penalty under the regulations and the reasons behind both.
- Allow an appeal. Publish the appeal route and time limit, and keep the complete case record.
No penalty should be applied until the committee has decided.
How Proctorly supports the malpractice process
With Proctorly, your malpractice committee gets better evidence and one auditable process for both hall and online cases.
- Hall and online incidents in one workflow. In the Proctorly Examination module (formerly ExaminationOS), incidents from halls and from online sittings feed one malpractice workflow. It ends in a recorded committee decision, and no penalty comes before it.
- Hall operations on record. Centers, rooms, seating that keeps likely collaborators apart, invigilator allocation, attendance and answer-book tracking are all recorded.
- Online evidence reviewed by people. For online candidates on the Proctorly core, AI raises flags and a trained reviewer records a decision and a reason for each one. Your committee only sees reviewed cases. Read more about human review proctoring.
- A case record that survives appeal. Clips, the timeline, the reviewer’s reasoning and a tamper-evident audit trail export together as one evidence pack.
- Secure papers and marking. A sealed paper vault with timed release, script digitization with chain of custody, anonymous marking and a face check on the evaluator during marking.
We don’t yet offer proctoring inside the exam hall itself. Online candidates are proctored on the Proctorly core, and hall and online candidates can share a single seat plan and a single set of results.
FAQ
What are the common forms of examination malpractice?
They include paper leaks, impersonation, taking unauthorized notes or devices into the exam, copying and collusion, getting outside help, tampering with scripts, influencing evaluators and changing results. Online exams add AI tools, remote-access software, second devices and screen overlays. Sorting them into before, during and after the exam helps an institution pair each form with a prevention control and a clear rule.
What is unfair means in an examination?
Many Indian universities and exam boards use “unfair means” as their term for exam malpractice. It covers any act that breaks exam rules or gives a candidate an unfair advantage, such as carrying notes, using a phone, copying or impersonation. University regulations usually spell out which acts count as unfair means, the hall procedure, the committee process and the range of penalties.
What should an invigilator do when they suspect malpractice?
Follow your regulations. Generally that means recording what you saw, when and where, securing any material, noting witnesses and letting the candidate carry on unless the rules say otherwise. The invigilator reports the incident without deciding the outcome. The evidence then goes to the malpractice or unfair means committee, which hears the candidate before reaching a decision.
Can a proctoring flag be treated as proof of malpractice?
No. A flag signals that something deserves a closer look, and lots of flags have innocent causes like noise, movement or a dropped connection. In Proctorly, a trained reviewer examines every flag and records a decision with a reason, and only your committee makes a finding. An automated flag never fails a candidate or imposes a penalty.
How can universities reduce exam malpractice?
Keep the paper in sealed storage with timed release, randomize questions from a bank and seat candidates so likely collaborators are apart. Verify identity, match supervision to the stakes, track answer books, mark anonymously and publish clear rules. Then take every case through a fair, consistent process, so candidates can see that malpractice gets detected and decided and that integrity matters.
Run a malpractice process that holds up on appeal. See how hall and online cases come together in a single workflow.