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C A S E S T U D Y :How eduKan Consortium

Students using BioSig-ID create a unique biosignature using four letters or numberswith a confined space on a web page. Software captures unique patterns of length, angle, speed,

height and number of strokes and stores the information in an encrypted database. Upon log in, BioSig-ID can quickly verify the “real” student.

Beginning in the spring of 1998, six presidents of western Kansas community colleges met to evaluate an online meansof offering courses to their student populations. From these early meetings, eduKan was formed as a cooperative effortbetween member colleges to offer courses via the Internet beginning in Fall 1999. eduKan now manages the online

courses for the six colleges in Kansas (Barton Community College, Colby Community College, Dodge City Community College,Garden City Community College, Pratt Community College and Seward County Community College & Area Technical School).Chief Executive Officer Mark Sarver wanted to reduce proctoring costs and deter online cheating while meeting verificationregulations for distance education required by the Department of Education and their regional accrediting agency. Sarversummarizes their activity with BSI’s technology as follows:

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eduKan staff worked with the team atBiometric Signature ID (BSI) to initiallypilot test BioSig-IDTM as part of thePearson LearningStudio authenticationprocess.

After the pilot, survey responses foundthat 97 percent of the students preferredBioSig-IDTM to finding a proctor or drivingto a facility for physical proctoring.Additionally, 98 percent of students had apositive experience with the verificationprocess.

The faculty and administration were alsovery positive about their user experienceespecially since it was saving them hun-dreds of hours of their time versus organ-izing student proctors.

The final results of the pilot, including thesurvey and cost analysis, proved that theBSI technology would more than meeteduKan’s goals.

The new “Suspicious Activity Report” hasalso become an essential tool to identifybehaviors indicative of academic dishon-esty and financial fraud. Using this newtool, eduKan has been able to identify var-ious scenarios of cheating and fraud thatin the past would have not been as easy todetect. This tool deters and detects cheat-ing while not being intrusive or burden-some to the vast majority of students whoare honest and hardworking.

eduKan also now receives regular atten-dance/verification reports to compare aca-demic activity from enrollment to censusdate, creating a report to help identify Pellrunners.

The integration into the Pearson LearningManagement system grade book is also aplus.

“BioSig-ID’s bio-signatures have nowbeen used for nearly 3 years with over 10,000students/users who have performed over300,000 validations in the system. BioSig-IDcontinues to be a Win/Win for the faculty,administration, and the students.” Sarver said.

HOW BIOSIG-ID WORKSStudents create a unique biosignature

using four letters or numbers within a confinedspace on a web page by moving their mouse,stylus or dragging their finger across theirsmartphone screen. The software captures theunique patterns of length, angle, speed, height,number of strokes and storesthe information in an encrypt-ed database. In seconds, any-where in the world BioSig-IDcan verify the “real” student.Upon log in, the unique biosig-nature of the student is com-pared to their stored biosigna-ture patterns. Identity verifica-tion is accomplished if thepatterns “match.” BioSig-IDconfirms that the personwho registered is the sameperson trying to accessgeneral coursework, anopen discussion, a quiz orfinal exam.

As BioSig-ID™ is asoftware-only biometricsolution, no hardwarerequired, the cost is lowenough for institutions tocomply with the need forcontinuous ID verificationand offers unlimited uselicenses with no user fees.

“Probably the mostcompelling reason for selecting the biosig-nature means of verification is that we didnot need to download any processing soft-ware; nor do the students,” says Dana L.Watson, deputy chancellor, academic andstudent services with Central Texas College(CTC) — a public, open-admission commu-nity college serving more than 50,000 stu-dents on military installations, in correction-al facilities, in embassies and on ships atsea “Given that we provide courses to manymembers of the armed forces, they certainlycould not download any software since themilitary, understandably, closely guardsaccess to their computers.”

Consistent with a goal of making imple-mentation and operation as seamless aspossible, BioSig-ID, using LTI integrateswith over 36 Learning ManagementSystems, including seven of the major learn-

ing management systems such asPearson/e-college, Blackboard, Moodlerooms, Remote Learner, Moodle, Desire toLearn and Campus.

The complete hosting of the process isoutside the academic institution’s businesssystem. In effect a turnkey option.

“We outsource every-thing we can except teachingand learning as a means offulfilling our mission to beaccessible and affordable.Since the biosignature sys-tem is hosted by the vendorwe are able to keep our over-head as well as our tuitionlow, “ Sarver said.

“We can provide anaudit trail including the time,date, and physical locationand even the IP address of auser who signs in for anyparticular course,” explainsJeff Maynard, CEO of BSI.“Through continuous andrandomized authenticationchecks, we can discoverfraudulent activity, like is thesame IP address used forlog-in all the time or does itcome in every once in awhile from another state? Wethen bring this potentialfraudulent activity to the

attention of the academic institution.”“The extensive reporting tool provides us

with the ability to uncover suspicious behaviorsthat can identify possible academic dishonesty,”Watson said.

Founded in 2007, Biometric Signature ID is aLewisville, Texas-based company. The compa-ny has in excess of 70 clients, nearly 2 millionusers in all 50 states and is used in over 60countries. Recently chosen by the WhiteHouse from 180 companies to provide a solu-tion to reduce online identity fraud withMicrosoft, AT&T, CA, AAMVA and the VirginiaDMV. Two issued patents and “New ProductInnovation of the Year in North America” con-firm this breakthrough technology. Thisbiometric tool has the experience to solve yourstudent verification needs. www.biosig-id.com, 877-700-1611

“We outsourceeverything we canexcept teachingand learning as ameans of fulfillingour mission to beaccessible and

affordable.”

MARK SARVERCEO

eduKan

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