The DANGER of sitting CMSS Online

[PhilipDAth]

Cisco Meraki has just released its latest exam - Cisco Meraki Solutions Specialist (CMSS).  Because of covid the exam is available to do online via Pearson Vue.  I used this process.

It was a horrible experience.

I locked myself in my bedroom and told the children not to disturb me. The rules say if they hear anyone else it's an automatic fail. You are recorded using the camera of your computer the whole time and you may not leave the view of the camera. If they see another person it is an instant fail.

I was made to take photos of my passport and send them in. I don't trust the process to take care of sensitive information like this and feel I am now set up for future identity theft when the testing people get breached - which they surely will, as they will become more and more of an attractive target collecting all this valuable data.

I was made to take photos of my bedroom from four different directions and have them checked by some person I don't know. Who knows what they do with the photos.

I was made to strip the bedding off my bed as the person watched via video camera.

I was made to disable antivirus and security software on my computer and then download software to scan my computer. The whole process felt very dangerous.

The online exam process is incredibly invasive and exposes you to a real risk of identify theft and fraud.

The Pearson Vue privacy policy is also unacceptable.  They should destroy my personally identifiable information that is collected for my safety as soon as they are finished.  Ideally, they should never collect information like passport details - they should only view it to verify the identity of the person.

http://www.pearsonvue.com/citb/privacy/CITBTermsandConditions.pdf 

Cisco Meraki - I don't find this process acceptable.

[DarrenOC]

@PhilipDAth , such a shame the experience has put a dampener on the whole experience. Seriously thinking about waiting now

[KarstenI]

I felt similar when first testing online. But I accepted if for a couple of reasons.

Most important, there was no real possibility for me to go to a testing center in these times. Either they are closed or limited in testing times that it just didn't work for me.

I assume that online-testing will stay even after covid is more controlled which I do not expect to happen in the next couple of months. I do not assume that Pearson Vue will change it's practices. They are strategic partner for too many companies and probably have long-term contracts to deliver the tests the way they think it is the right way to do.

Until the testing centers open again in a normal way I have to swallow the bitter pill and do online testing as I need some of the tests for work.

The most relevant reason that I do not think that this procedure will change, is that likely most people nowadays do not have any concerns with it.

[billyzoellers]

I've definitely heard some horror stories, so I know my experience isn't the case for everyone. For me at least, the online exam experience has been positive and painless.

I took CMSS online last week, and I've also taken two of the Cisco DevNet exams online since July. Each of my exams was taken from a different location (office, bedroom, empty room with a desk) and different device setup (mouse vs trackpad, external monitor vs laptop screen). In one instance the proctor did ask me to to move the webcam around the room and show that there was nothing under my mousepad. On the two other exams I had no communication with the proctor at all.

I generally try to make sure that the room is clean with minimal extraneous items that they might have questions about. I generally take the room photos using the wide-angle mode on my iPhone so that as much of the room as possible is visible.

[BlakeRichardson]

Strip the bedding off the bed.... WTF I thought you were pulling my leg for a second.

Think I'll give it a miss with a 4 month old and two large dogs who don't understand personal space I'll most likely fail within a few minutes.

[KarstenI]

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@BlakeRichardson wrote:

Think I'll give it a miss with a 4 month old and two large dogs who don't understand personal space I'll most likely fail within a few minutes.

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I tried to hypnotize my cat "no, it's not playtime", "no, I won't feed you now", "no, do not jump on the table and rest on my keyboard". Luckily, I had success with that. Or, more likely, the cat was not in a mood for all of that.

[Glen]

Having taken plenty of Cisco exams at various approved Pearson VUE testing centers, it was definitely an eye-opening experience to set up my own "testing area" at home when I took the CMSS. I won't repeat most of what's already been said here by @PhilipDAth and @billyzoellers but I wanted to say that every person's experience will vary depending on the proctor that is assigned to you. Mine took a full 15-20 minutes to validate the photos of my testing area while I sat still without anything to distract me with - no coffee, no phone, no music, and couldn't even stand up to stretch my legs as I had to keep my face within the video camera. The VUE software also triggered my anti-virus a few times with a very loud system chime, which didn't trigger the proctor. However, talking out loud to myself (it's a nervous tick of mine) DID trigger the proctor and he asked me to stay silent.

I think everyone is entitled to their own opinions about what's acceptable in terms of privacy, security, and confidentiality. But I think during this period of time as the global pandemic is still on-going and possibly into the future - we are all adjusting to keep the wheels going. I don't think it's reasonable to stop offering certifications altogether especially since there are plenty of people that need to meet certain recertification deadlines. But we all agree that clearly there's a lot of improvements that can be made to Pearson VUE's method of facilitating and proctoring these exams.

A question more directed at @PhilipDAth as I'm curious about your opinion: what do you believe would've been the right course of action by Cisco Meraki at the launch of this exam? Would it be to withhold the launching of the exam until it can be taken in the traditional format (in-person)?

Where it is possible and allowed, this ECMS exam can be taken in a traditional setting. A team member of mine in Japan visited a VUE testing center and completed the exam in person. The concerns and objections with the potential security vulnerabilities and identity risk surely can be applied to the entire portfolio of Cisco exams (really any VUE offered exams).

My final thought: the CMSS certification follows and abides by the rules and processes that have been implemented & regulated by the Cisco Certification team, who jointly works together to approve of Pearson VUE's testing practices & policies. I don't think there was much Cisco Meraki could've done to request that this certification was proctored differently from all other Cisco specialist certifications...

[PhilipDAth]

>I think everyone is entitled to their own opinions about what's acceptable in terms of privacy, security, and confidentiality.

Sure everyone's entitled to their opinion.  In my country - its a breach of our privacy law.  I have commenced the process of a formal complaint (which starts by following the privacy complaint procedure of the companies involved - neither Cisco nor Pearson Vue has responded to my formal complaint as of this point in time).

I would be surprised if the process was not a breach of the law in other jurisdictions as well.

>what do you believe would've been the right course of action by Cisco Meraki at the launch of this exam?

My expectation is Cisco Meraki have no control over the entire process, nor any choice in the matter.  Cisco will have 100% control over the whole thing.

Consequently, there was no course of action Cisco Meraki could have chosen.

>The concerns and objections with the potential security vulnerabilities and identity risk surely can be applied to the entire portfolio of Cisco exams (really any VUE offered exams).

Correct - the entire Cisco process for online exam taken is terrible.  Unacceptable.

[BlakeRichardson]

I know Google run their own certifcation testing, you book an exam, they give you a login for a mock Gsuite domain and then you have to configure various things. You have a time limit and at the end you click submit and their back end checks your setup and scores you based on the how you completed each task. 

There is no human interaction involved, yes that means there is a risk of cheating however at the end of the day most people undertake training for their own personal development.

At the end of the day I employ someone based on their practical skills rather than their qualifications. Sure some people will try and take advantage of this however this is where provisional periods work. 

Just because someone has a drivers license doesn't mean they know how to drive.

Thats just my two cents.