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Students can utilize chatbots like ChatGPT to generate text, with nearly 90% admitting to doing so in one survey. However, this form of plagiarism, known as ghostwriting, is becoming more detectable as Artificial Intelligence-powered tools like Turnitin and iThenticate improve their ability to identify copied content. Some students attempt to evade detection by using text-spinning programs to paraphrase plagiarized material, but this has led to an ongoing "arms race" between cheaters and detection methods.

20 Massey University students allegedly caught using ChatGPT to cheat have claimed amnesty in exchange for their confessions. The teaching team offered an amnesty deadline and those who resubmitted their work would receive a maximum mark of 50%. For those who didn’t, a confirmed breach can result in a mark of zero for the assessment or a failure for the whole course.

A survey of 125 university librarians across the US has discovered differing opinions on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in higher education. Looking into the ethics of AI use, the report said that 8% of librarians stated a definitive ‘yes’ when asked if they believe it is cheating if students use AI products for research, while 42% felt this to be somewhat true. Major concerns include cheating, eliminating or reducing critical thinking and originality, and replacing human jobs.

The New York City Department of Education has blocked access to ChatGPT on its networks and devices over fears that the AI tool will harm students’ education. Many teachers say software like ChatGPT essentially makes it impossible to test students’ ability to write essays at home. Although tools to detect AI-generated writing already exist, it’s unclear how accurate they will be, or if students can outwit them with simple alterations to AI-generated text.

The Department of Justice reports that two education officials have been sentenced to jail after pleading guilty to fraudulently enrolling people in virtual schools and then claiming money from public funds on their behalf. The districts received payments from the Alabama Education Trust Fund as if the students were attending public schools while the defendants misappropriated state money through direct cash payments and payments to third-party contractors owned by various co-conspirators.

According to the “Cyber Threats Targeting the Global Education Sector” report, there has been a 20 per cent increase in cyber threats to the global education sector in the first three months of 2022. 58% of threats were targeted at Indian- based educational institutions and online platforms. The USA was the second most affected country globally with 19 recorded incidents. The databases leaked from educational institutions contain personally identifiable information of students and their families, website user records and credentials and examination results.

An anthropology professor at Yale College reported to the University’s Executive Committee that 81 out of 136 total students for inappropriate use of online and course materials during online open-note examinations. In 2020, the Executive Committee reprimanded 49 out of 78 students, 10 were placed on probation, five were suspended and 14 were found not responsible or had their charges withdrawn.

17 medical students at the Geisel School of Medicine were accused of cheating during online exams. The school found evidence of the students who logged into the online course platform Canvas, giving them access to the answers. After an investigation, seven of the cases were dismissed, while the other ten students were expelled, suspended, or giving a failing grade for the course. Some also received unprofessional conduct marks on their records.

Due to a glitch in the online testing program, 31 students out of a class of 137 were involved in a cheating incident at Southern University's School of Nursing. The students used their cell phones and notified other students through a group text message that the cameras were off so that they could cheat. With the exam being compromised, the faculty administered a different exam that covered the same content.

In the three months before March 15, the company ProctorU, which monitors tests remotely, confirmed cheating in 2,547 cases. In the three months after, when the pandemic triggered campuses across the US to move online, ProctorU verified 57,597 cheating incidents. Ethicists say that students Googling answers on tests have an unfair advantage over students who do not. This same behaviour by medical students or apprentice pilots has consequences that are even more serious, as it places others in jeopardy.