The world’s biggest accountancy organisation is scaling back the use of online exams after warning that developments in artificial intelligence have increased the risk of abuse in remote testing, The Guardian reported.
The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) said that from March most candidates will need to attend exam centres in person, ending a system that was put in place during the Covid pandemic. Online exams will be allowed only in rare and exceptional circumstances.
The decision follows what the ACCA describes as an escalating challenge in maintaining exam integrity. According to its chief executive, Helen Brand, the methods used to cheat have become increasingly sophisticated, overtaking the effectiveness of existing monitoring systems.
Online testing was originally adopted to ensure continuity during lockdowns, allowing students to progress towards qualification when exam centres were closed. Since then, however, regulators and professional bodies have raised repeated warnings about misconduct in high-stakes professional exams.
In 2022, the Financial Reporting Council, the UK’s audit and accounting watchdog, described cheating as an active concern across major firms, including top-tier auditors such as the Big Four. That year also saw EY fined $100m (£74m) by US regulators after employees were found to have cheated on ethics exams and the firm was accused of misleading investigators.
The ACCA, which has nearly 260,000 members globally, said it has invested significant effort in tackling dishonest behaviour but acknowledged that those intent on cheating are adapting rapidly, driven in part by easy access to AI tools.
Other professional bodies have reported similar pressures. The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales said last year that reports of cheating continued to rise, although it still allows some exams to be taken online.
Brand said the wider trend across professional qualifications is clear, with fewer high-stakes exams relying on remote invigilation as concerns about credibility and trust grow.
