pune cheating in examinations has acquired new shades and means examinees are using cellphones that look like calculator covers pen cameras and smart watches that can store snapshots of texts or a music player with recorded answers to cheat in exams companies such as prometric and testmetrics that conduct online tests for management and other competitive examinations have also reported students carrying bluetooth devices as small as hairpins and smart calculators that store formulae and equations test takers said very few students now use traditional methods like chits and scribbling on writing pads and palms pawan kumar chief technology officer at wheebox said technologysavvy youths cellphones handheld devices including digital readers and the internet are being used in interpersonal communication especially for examinations handheld devices have enabled their users to access and retain large amount of information for future references but like everything that is a harbinger of goodness the bad sides are never too far away wheebox which is an online skill assessment company has launched its own technology platform iwatch with the use of this technology iwatch can remotely track every mouse click of testtaking students the technology allows computers to monitor faraway students via webcams and screensharing using internet connections and also automated checking of photo ids ensure that the testtaker is the student who has registered for the assessment and no fake profiles are created kumar said candidates who used to be content with scribbling on clipboard pads palms tucking pieces of papers into cuffs and shoe soles have now upgraded they enter examination halls with a gamut of information deposited in handheld devices like cellphones organisers and ereaders according to prometric testing services that conducts the gre toefl the national board of examinations nbe among others the fate of any competitive test online or paperbased relies 100 on the security built into the test development and delivery by the test sponsor wade britt country manager prometric said we encounter a number of interesting and creative ways that people use to cheat small cameras radio devices and covers to make a smartphone appear like a calculator are just some of the methods we have come across candidates have to be sanitized with metal detectors and frisked for cheating material to be allowed in the testing room britt added that the testing agency ensures that the test content is stored and transferred to the centres without any room for theft prometric has also employed several layers of security at the testing locations electronic identification and digital fingerprinting is used for identity verification to ensure that proxy exam takers are not allowed to take the test to safeguard against the use of mobile phones and other prohibited devices which are physically carried a stringent physical check is done by using metaldetection wands and handfrisking britt said security for high stakes tests is not just about finding someone with a mobile phone security is a strategy and the result of multiple processes that are required at