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UNAM Orders 58,000 In‑Person Retests After AI‑Proctored Exam Anomalies

The university paused admissions after an expert panel found score patterns it said undercut confidence in the online, AI‑monitored results.

Overview

  • UNAM moved its annual entrance exam online this year using Respondus LockDown browser and an AI webcam proctor from Territorium, then convened a technical commission when results looked abnormal.
  • Exam scoring showed a sharp jump in top marks, with the share scoring 110+ rising from about 0.9% in prior years to 5.5% and the share scoring 100+ climbing from 3.5% to roughly 16%.
  • The expert commission recommended a supervised in‑person “control exam,” and UNAM said roughly 58,000 applicants must retake the test and that the semester start would be delayed by about three weeks.
  • Territorium has said its platform 'operated as planned,' while independent analysts and mathematician Raúl Rojas have estimated that roughly half of online exams may show evidence of cheating.
  • Students protested on campus, Mexico’s president called for an investigation, and the case has raised wider questions about the limits of webcam proctoring and lockdown browsers that only monitor a single device or a narrow camera view.