What is ProctorU?
ProctorU is an online proctoring service best known for live proctoring, in which a trained proctor connects with the candidate over the internet before and during the exam. Universities, certification bodies and testing organizations use it, mostly in the United States.
ProctorU is now part of Meazure Learning. Over the years it has offered several service levels, from automated sessions to fully live proctoring. The vendor’s current documentation shows how its services are named and packaged today.
How does ProctorU work?
Broadly, a live session goes like this. The exact steps depend on the service level and the rules your institution sets.
- Scheduling. The candidate books a session time or launches from the exam link.
- Connection. The candidate connects with a proctor through the browser and any software the session needs.
- Identity. The candidate holds photo ID up to the webcam, and the proctor confirms it.
- Room and desk check. The candidate shows the room, desk and surroundings on the webcam.
- Computer check. The proctor checks the screen and computer before the exam begins.
- The exam. The candidate sits the exam while the session is watched and recorded.
- The report. The institution gets a session report noting any incidents.
For your exam office, the detail that matters most is the service level. A fully live session and an automated one feel different to candidates, and they give you different evidence.
What can ProctorU see?
During a session, ProctorU can see what the candidate shares through the webcam, microphone and screen. In the pre-exam checks, the proctor may also look at the candidate’s screen and computer to confirm the setup. ProctorU’s current documentation explains exactly what is viewed, when, and how candidates are told.
No service can see what is outside the camera’s view, because a webcam shows one angle of one room. That holds for every product on the market, ours included, and it is why the record and the review matter as much as the camera.
Does ProctorU record you?
According to its public descriptions, ProctorU records sessions for review. Before the exam, candidates should be told what is recorded, why and how long it is kept. Your institution’s exam instructions are the best place to say this plainly, so the answer to “does ProctorU record you” never catches anyone off guard.
What a live proctor adds, and what it does not
A live proctor can do things software can’t. They can ask a candidate to show the desk again, clarify a rule or note context as it happens, which is valuable in high-stakes exams.
Still, a live proctor is one person watching a camera feed, and attention runs out. In a dispute, your institution is protected by what happens afterwards: whether the incident is recorded with evidence, whether someone reviews it and whether your own process makes the final call.
Why candidates search for cheating on ProctorU, and what institutions should take from it
Searches such as “how to cheat on ProctorU test” and “cheat on ProctorU” come up in large numbers. They remind institutions that integrity rests on several layers working together: clear rules, identity checks, observation, exam design and fair review.
We don’t describe methods. Here is what your exam office needs, category by category:
- Help on another device. A phone or a second screen. Room and desk checks, observation during the exam and clear rules deter most of this and bring the rest to light.
- AI assistants. Chatbots used during the exam. Screen checks, browser restrictions and questions that test reasoning lower the risk.
- Another person. Someone helping in the room, or sitting the exam in the candidate’s place. Live ID checks and ongoing observation deal with this.
- Tampering with the computer. Remote-control tools or hidden apps. Pre-exam computer checks are designed to catch these.
If you are a candidate reading this, these behaviors are what proctoring is built to notice, and attempts usually leave a record. Sitting the exam honestly protects your result and what your qualification is worth.
For a plain account of where any camera-based product falls short, see our page on what we can and cannot see.
After an incident: what your institution should receive
Whichever product you use, an incident should reach your institution as a case you can act on, with more behind it than a short note. Ask for:
- the clip or snapshots around the moment, with time stamps;
- what the proctor or reviewer saw, and why they recorded it;
- the candidate’s identity checks for the session;
- any technical problems during the session, recorded separately;
- an export that your committee and an appeal panel can read.
After that, your own process decides. A proctor’s note or a software flag should never turn into a penalty without that step. See how human review proctoring handles this at Proctorly.
Questions to ask ProctorU, or any vendor
- Which service level suits each of our exams, and what does each one include?
- How are proctors trained, and how many candidates does each one watch?
- What is in the session report, and can we export it?
- How are accommodations recorded so that permitted behavior isn’t flagged?
- What happens if a candidate’s connection drops?
- Where is candidate data stored, how long is it kept and who can access it?
How Proctorly handles the same situations
Proctorly is a different product. Here is how it covers the same ground, and we don’t claim it suits every institution.
- Four assurance levels, chosen per exam. Recorded, Every flag reviewed, Live pop-in (a proctor watching a group steps in by chat or audio when a signal fires) and Live dedicated (a proctor watches a small group throughout, with a live check-in and identity confirmation).
- Identity through the session, with continuous face verification, replay rejection, photo ID capture and active liveness.
- Computer checks on Windows. An optional desktop agent looks for remote-access and recording tools, overlays, extra or mirrored displays, USB and Bluetooth devices, virtual machines and VPNs. It records that an app is open and never reads the candidate’s documents.
- Every flag reviewed by a person at the Every flag reviewed level and above, with a recorded decision and reason.
- An evidence pack per case containing clips, the timeline, decisions and a tamper-evident audit trail.
- Candidates are told what is captured before the exam starts.
Explore online proctoring at Proctorly, or compare more vendors in Honorlock vs Proctorio.
Frequently asked questions
What can ProctorU see during an exam?
ProctorU sees what the candidate shares through the webcam, microphone and screen, and the proctor may look at the screen and computer during pre-exam checks. It can’t see outside the camera’s view. The exact scope depends on the service level, so check ProctorU’s current documentation and your institution’s exam instructions for the details that apply to you.
What is ProctorU?
ProctorU is an online proctoring service best known for live proctoring, where a trained proctor connects with the candidate before and during the exam. Universities, certification bodies and testing organizations use it, and it is now part of Meazure Learning. Its service levels have changed over time, so check its current documentation.
Does ProctorU record you?
Going by its public descriptions, ProctorU records sessions for later review. Candidates should always learn before the exam what is recorded, why and how long it is kept. If you run exams, put this in your exam instructions in plain words, so candidates know what to expect and can ask questions before the day.
Is a ProctorU incident report enough to penalize a candidate?
No. A report is where a case starts, and it proves nothing by itself. With any vendor, an incident should arrive with evidence, the reason it was recorded and any technical problems noted separately. Your institution’s own integrity process should then review the case and decide, and a note or flag alone should never become a penalty.
How is Proctorly different from ProctorU?
Both offer live proctoring. Proctorly also lets you pick a lighter level for each exam, such as Recorded or Every flag reviewed, on the same platform. The exam runs inside Proctorly, a trained person can review every flag and record a reason, and your institution decides with an exportable evidence pack. If you use an LMS, Moodle monitoring with OAuth and LTI 1.3 is live and supports Canvas, Blackboard, and other learning platforms.