An enhanced mechanism for the authentication of students taking online exams

Over the last decades, the computer has spread its tentacles around the globe and online examinations have blossomed on the education world/arena. This sudden shift from traditional assessment methods stems from the fact that more and more students are having recourse to distance learning and online courses from institutions worldwide. By proposing online examinations many of these organizations are cutting on their costs by avoiding the conduct of physical examinations, while at the same time benefitting from a wider pool of eligible candidates, a real panacea for those organizations. Moreover this system puts a thinner time constraints as for specific examinations users can view their results nearly instantly. Online examinations, however, have many issues involved that require organizations to resort to it after careful study. The authentication of the examinees is one of the fundamental aspects to be considered. Correctly identifying an individual is of utmost importance so that the certification/degree awarded afterwards will not be disputed or challenged. This paper will demonstrate an enhanced mechanism to rightfully identify a student for an online examination. To give the right leverage, a right dose of different authentication methods will be revised first and their strengths and weaknesses will be assessed.