Ever feel like somebody’s watching you? 👀 A vulnerability has been found in the anti-cheating software Proctorio — which exposed tens of thousands of students in the Netherlands to hacks.
The software is used by universities and colleges to identify cheating, via webcam and microphone, during at-home exams. However, through the leak hackers could peer into students’ webcams and access their online accounts, RTL Nieuws reports.
Ethical hackers to the rescue
The hack was discovered by ethical hackers from Computest who examined the software and found the leak. They found that malicious hackers could also make secret recordings through the person’s webcam and even access payment accounts. 😱
The leak was reported to Proctorio on June 18 and it was fixed a week later. However, while higher education students in the Netherlands have been vulnerable to hacks for months, Proctorio has not disclosed whether any hacks occurred.
Popular among many institutions
Proctorio is popular with many Dutch universities and colleges including the UvA, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU Amsterdam), Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR), Tilburg University, and more.
READ MORE | Students in the Netherlands are coming to exams with coronavirus complaints
Controversial software
Students from multiple universities, such as the University of Amsterdam (UvA) and Leiden University, have protested the use of these types of proctoring software because they believe that it violates their privacy.
The UvA student council even filed a case with the university for the use of the software, but the judge ruled that UvA should continue to use it. Yikes.. 😐
What do you think about anti-cheating software? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below! 👇🏼
Feature Image: dedivan1923/Depositphotos
