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Following the rapid transition to digital delivery that many institutions have had to navigate, there has been an increase in online services that help students cheat. A simple Google search for the term ‘assignment help’ returned 279 million results in mid-June 2020 and 302 million in early 2021. In Australia to help combat the problem, the Government has passed a law that makes it an offence to provide or advertise academic cheating services in higher education and published an academic integrity toolkit.

A research team from the Canadian University of Dubai has identified a new approach to combating academic integrity using machine learning techniques. The new method applies an algorithm to identify cases of cheating through post-exam analysis of student grades from quizzes, midterm exams, and the final exam of an entire class. This technique can complement the work of commercial plagiarism detection software and provide a deterrent and non-intrusive alternative to remotely proctored exams.

A 2018 study revealed that 70.7% of second-year students at 8 Mai 1945 Guelma University in Algeria admitted that they had cheated in tests as a result of competition for grades, parental expectations and ineffective invigilation by the teacher. In an effort to protect academic integrity, the Algerian Ministry of Higher Education approved a new law at the end of 2020 that sets out the legal procedures for preventing scientific and academic theft.

Over 90 medical students from Inha University in Incheon, west of Seoul, were found to have cheated during remote exams. They gathered at a specific location in a group of two to nine to take tests together or to compare their answers via telephone or social media platforms. To prevent its recurrence, the university demands students to submit an oath of academic honesty, use an online proctor system, and videotape themselves taking the tests. Those who are suspected of cheating could be required to take a verbal test.