**TL;DR** — All four major products (Honorlock, Proctorio, ProctorU, Respondus Monitor) record webcam + screen. They differ in whether AI or humans review the tape, how strictly they lock the browser, and what devices they can detect around you.
Last updated: July 2026.
Side-by-side comparison
| Feature | Honorlock | Proctorio | ProctorU | Respondus Monitor | |---|---|---|---|---| | Webcam + screen recording | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Live human proctor | Optional | No | Yes (paid tier) | No | | AI incident flagging | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Second-device detection | Yes (audio + camera) | Limited | Yes (live) | No | | Browser lockdown | Extension | Extension | Full LockDown Browser | Full LockDown Browser | | Retention | 12 months | Institution-set | Institution-set | Institution-set |
What all four reliably detect
- A face leaving the camera frame for more than ~3 seconds.
- A second voice audible on the microphone.
- Tab-switching or opening a new browser window (inside their sandbox).
- Extreme silence combined with fast, correct answers.
What none of them reliably detect
- A phone held below-frame, screen dimmed, next to your keyboard.
- Wired earpiece with an accomplice reading answers aloud from another room.
- Post-it notes on the monitor bezel outside the camera cone.
- Rehearsed answers memorized in advance.
The false-positive problem
A 2024 Michigan State study found that AI-only proctoring flags **1 in 4 test-takers** with at least one "incident" — most are false positives (looking away to think, background noise, roommates). Institutions that rely on AI-only review generate a lot of noise.
Student rights
- Your institution must disclose which proctoring product they use before the exam.
- Most US universities let students dispute an incident report before it goes to academic integrity.
- Under FERPA, you can request a copy of any recording used against you in a case.
The honest recommendation
Proctoring is designed to be adversarial, and stress + false positives can hurt your grade even when you did nothing wrong. Better test preparation and honest exam-day fundamentals — a stable internet connection, an empty room, sufficient lighting, a bathroom break beforehand — beat every workaround.
If you want a tutor to genuinely prepare you for a proctored exam, see our [online exam help service](/services/online-exam-help).
**Sources**: EFF proctoring report (2025), Michigan State proctoring efficacy study (2024), Honorlock/Proctorio/ProctorU/Respondus vendor documentation (2026).