Cisco Exam Security

I have just received the email pasted below. Basically it lays out Cisco's new exam security procedures and the most important point of the whole thing in my opinion is that your result is not final until 72 hours after you have done your exam. In this time Cisco (or probably a company they have outsourced it to) run forensics software against your exam to try and determine if they think you have legitimately passed the exam or used some sort of cheating method. Anyhow at least they are trying to do something about exam security and it looks like the measures they announced some time ago have finally been implemented.

Cisco and Pearson VUE Launch Global Test Delivery Exam Security Enhancements

Cisco and its global testing provider, Pearson VUE, a business of Pearson Inc. are pleased to announce a series of security enhancements that will reinforce the integrity and value of its Career certification program.

The advanced security enhancements include the use of digital photographs for candidate-identity verification and forensic analysis of testing data. The new measures, to be implemented beginning on Aug. 1, will include:

• Photo on Score Report and Web – On completion of a certification exam at the test center, candidates will receive preliminary score reports imprinted with their photos and unique authentication codes. The authentication code can be used to access a candidate’s official score online at Pearson VUE’s website usually within 72 hours of the examination. The online score report will also display the candidate’s photo. Candidates may share access to their online records with employers or other third parties.
  
  
• Forensic Analysis – Exam results and other testing data will be continuously analyzed by forensic software to detect aberrant testing behavior and to flag suspect exams for further investigation.
  
  
• Preliminary Score Report – All paper score reports will be preliminary, pending the results of forensic analysis, until official exam scores are posted to the Web usually within 72 hours of exam completion. Once the exam scores are official, candidates may use the authentication codes on their score reports to access the Pearson VUE website for score and photo verification.

These new exam security measures are part of Cisco’s overall strategy to protect the value and integrity of its certifications. Other measures include simulation-based testing, dynamically generated questions and emulations to help ensure that Cisco certified networking professionals continue to have the knowledge, skills, and credentials to perform well on the job.

To find out more about Cisco Career Certifications access the Cisco Learning Network at www.cisco.com/go/learnnetspace.

To sign up for a Cisco exam at a VUE testing center go to http://www.pearsonvue.com/cisco/online/