Why we publish our limits
Exam offices make decisions about real students. A reviewer, a malpractice committee and an appeal panel need to know what the record shows, and they also need to know what it could never have shown. A camera and a screen recording cannot see every way of getting help. Being open about that is what makes the rest of the record credible.
The coverage summary
Proctorly runs in three setups. Every exam starts with browser-based proctoring. Higher-stakes exams can add the optional Windows desktop agent, and the live levels add a proctor watching in real time. Each row in the table builds on the one above it.
| Setup | What it observes | What it blocks | What it cannot see |
|---|---|---|---|
| Browser-based proctoring only | The webcam and microphone, with the candidate’s face matched at the start and throughout the session. Photo ID capture and active liveness where the exam requires them. Phones and other devices in view of the camera. Unusual audio and movement, as signals for review. The screen, where the exam requires screen capture. Tab and window events and extra monitors. Known AI tools from a maintained list, known overlay apps and AI browsers, remote-assistance and screen-sharing tools, virtual machines, browser extensions and screen recording tools. | The exam runs in a locked browser session. Photo or video replays are rejected at the face check. Sections can be locked once the candidate leaves them. | A phone or other device kept completely out of the camera’s view. Notes outside the frame. A person outside the room, or one who never appears on camera and never speaks. A second computer. Software on the computer that browser-level detection does not report, such as USB or Bluetooth devices, VPNs and open office apps. An AI tool that isn’t on the maintained list. |
| Browser plus the optional Windows desktop agent | Everything above, plus checks on the computer itself: running apps, remote-access and recording tools, screen overlays, extra or mirrored displays, USB devices, Bluetooth earphones, virtual machines, VPNs, extra browser windows, tabs and extensions, and open office apps. | The same locked browser session and replay rejection as above. The agent notes and reports what it finds. It is a signal for review and does not block anything. | What is inside the candidate’s documents and files, since the agent notes that an app is open and never reads them. An earpiece or other device that isn’t connected to the computer, unless it shows on camera. A device or notes completely out of the camera’s view, and a person outside the room. Any computer the agent is not installed on. |
| Live proctoring (Live pop-in and Live dedicated) | Everything in the setup it runs on, plus a proctor watching in real time. At Live pop-in, a proctor watching a group steps in by chat or audio when a signal fires. At Live dedicated, a proctor watches a small group for the whole exam, with a live check-in and identity confirmation at the start. | The same locked session and replay rejection. The proctor can contact the candidate during the exam. | Anything the camera cannot show. A proctor is one person watching a camera feed, so a device or notes completely outside the frame, or a person outside the room, stay out of view. Attention has limits too, which is why every flag is still reviewed and recorded. |
No setup sees every way of getting help. Where a risk can’t be observed, you can reduce it through question design (randomized item pools, section timers, questions that need working) or choose a different format for that exam.
Minimum device and connection
Every setup needs a laptop, desktop, tablet or mobile phone with a camera and microphone, running Chrome, Safari, Edge or Ulaa, with at least 512 Kbps download and 128 Kbps upload. The desktop agent runs on a Windows computer, and the exam link tells candidates when they need it. Candidates can check their setup beforehand with the public system check, which runs in the browser without a login and stores nothing.
Principles behind it
A signal is not a finding
Every detection is a signal for a person to review, never proof. AI raises flags, a trained reviewer records a decision with a reason, and your institution decides. See human review proctoring.
A technical gap is not misconduct
When a camera, microphone or upload fails, that gap belongs in a category of its own, outside the integrity score. We plan to add five evidence labels (Observed, Suspected, Blocked, Unobservable and Unavailable) so that every report keeps a technical failure apart from a suspected incident.
No hidden monitoring
Candidates are told what is captured before the exam starts, and nothing is monitored in secret. An on-screen indicator that shows when the camera, microphone or screen is being captured is planned.
Noting is not reading
On Windows, the optional desktop agent notes that an app is open. It never reads the candidate’s documents.
Other limits to know
- A camera and a screen recording cannot see every way of getting help.
- Unusual audio and movement are raised only as signals for review in context. Reading aloud, assistive tools, household noise and disability-related movement are not misconduct.
- The optional desktop agent runs on Windows.
- We don’t offer proctoring inside an exam hall. With the Proctorly Examination module, online candidates are proctored and hall candidates sit under your invigilators.
- AI tool detection works from a maintained list of known tools, so a tool that isn’t on the list may not be recognized.
Supported devices and connections
Candidates can sit an exam on a laptop, desktop, tablet or mobile phone with a camera and microphone, in Chrome, Safari, Edge or Ulaa, with at least 512 Kbps download and 128 Kbps upload. Some exams also require the Windows desktop agent. Our guide to what is a proctored exam tells candidates more.
How this connects to review and appeals
A reviewer records each decision against what the setup could observe. When a committee or appeal panel reads the case, the evidence pack shows the clips, the timeline, the reviewer’s reasoning and the audit trail, and knowing the setup’s limits lets them weigh that evidence fairly.
The threats Proctorly watches for are listed on online proctoring. If your exam office is researching specific methods, our guides on online exam cheating and what proctoring can detect explain each one and how review handles it. You’ll find more of our commitments in the Trust center.