CD ExamFocus

CD ExamFocus is a privacy-first focus monitoring plugin for Moodle quizzes. It helps educators identify and document when an active quiz attempt loses browser focus, providing additional evidence of possible access to AI tools, websites, documents or other external resources during an assessment.

Unlike invasive remote-proctoring solutions, CD ExamFocus does not use cameras, microphones, screen recording or biometric monitoring. All monitoring data remains within the institution's Moodle environment.

How it works

When enabled for a quiz, CD ExamFocus monitors browser signals indicating that the quiz is no longer the active tab or window.

The plugin consolidates overlapping browser signals into clear focus-loss incidents, applies a configurable grace period to ignore very brief changes, and records relevant information for authorised teachers.

When the student returns to the quiz, the plugin can optionally display a notification or require acknowledgement.

Teachers can follow active attempts through a near-real-time monitoring report.

Key features

• Focus-loss detection during active Moodle quiz attempts.
• Near-real-time teacher monitoring report with automatic refresh.
• Current focus and connection status for each attempt.
• Incident count and total time spent away from the quiz.
• Detailed focus-loss event history.
• Configurable grace period for very brief focus changes.
• Optional student acknowledgement after returning to the quiz.
• CSV export for authorised users.
• Support for Moodle groups.
• Dedicated Moodle capabilities for access control.
• Configurable data-retention period.
• Automatic scheduled deletion of expired monitoring data.
• Moodle Privacy API support.
• No external services, API keys or subscriptions required.

Privacy by design

CD ExamFocus is designed to provide useful assessment-integrity information without invasive surveillance.

The plugin does not use:

• Cameras.
• Microphones.
• Screen recording.
• Biometric monitoring.
• External monitoring services.
• Third-party APIs.

Monitoring data is stored within the institution's Moodle database and is subject to Moodle's existing permissions and privacy mechanisms.

Assessment integrity

CD ExamFocus provides a proportionate and transparent additional layer of integrity for Moodle-based assessments.

Leaving the active exam window may indicate that a student is consulting an AI assistant, website, document or another application.

However, CD ExamFocus records observable browser-focus events. It does not claim to determine what resource was accessed, prove misconduct or guarantee that artificial intelligence was not used.

For example, the plugin may not detect:

• Activity performed on a second device.
• Browser-integrated AI assistants.
• Operating-system overlays.
• Resources that do not require leaving the active quiz window.
• Prepared physical materials.

Focus-loss incidents may also have legitimate causes, including:

• System dialogs.
• Accessibility tools.
• Browser or operating-system notifications.
• Connectivity problems.
• Other technical interruptions.

For these reasons, recorded incidents should always be reviewed in context and must not be used as the sole basis for automatic disciplinary or grading decisions.

Who is it for?

CD ExamFocus is designed for:

• Schools.
• Universities.
• Training organisations.
• Examination centres.
• Other institutions using Moodle quizzes for supervised or semi-supervised assessment.

It is particularly suitable for organisations that want an additional assessment-integrity mechanism without deploying invasive remote-proctoring technology.

Requirements

• Moodle 4.5 or later.
• A current web browser with JavaScript enabled.
• Moodle cron enabled for scheduled data-retention cleanup.
• HTTPS is strongly recommended for production environments.

Important limitation

CD ExamFocus is a monitoring and deterrence tool, not a locked browser.

It cannot prevent students from switching applications, identify which external resource was opened, monitor another device or guarantee that unauthorised resources were not used.

Its purpose is to provide educators with additional contextual information that can help them review assessment activity more effectively.