Summary
This article explains how faculty can request a PIN override in Honorlock when students with ADA accommodations require an alternative to standard proctoring. It outlines when a PIN is appropriate, how to request one through Honorlock Support, and the important considerations for working with ISU Disability Services, since the PIN fully disables Honorlock’s monitoring and secure-browser features.
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Description
In some cases, students with approved ADA accommodations may require adjustments to how their online exams are proctored. For example, a student may need to use assistive technology or testing software that is not compatible with Honorlock’s secure-browser environment. In these situations, Honorlock provides a way to bypass its proctoring and security features through a PIN override.
The PIN allows the exam to be launched without Honorlock’s monitoring tools, recording functions, or secure-browser restrictions. Because this completely disables Honorlock for that exam attempt, it should only be used in coordination with Honorlock Support and ISU Disability Services to ensure that accommodations are met appropriately while still maintaining exam integrity.
How to Request a Pin Override
- Go to Honorlock in Canvas
- Navigate to your course in Canvas.
- Open Honorlock from the course navigation menu.
- Contact Honorlock Support
- At the bottom of the Honorlock page, select the purple speech bubble icon to open Honorlock’s support chat.
- You can also reach Honorlock’s 24/7 support directly: Honorlock Support.
- Provide Exam Information: Faculty (or the testing centers) will need to share the following details with Honorlock Support so they can create the PIN:
- Course name (as it appears in Honorlock in Canvas)
- Quiz/exam name (as it appears in Honorlock in Canvas)
- Instructor name
- Receive the PIN
- Honorlock Support will generate a unique PIN for the specific exam.
- A new PIN must be requested for each exam that requires an override. The PIN is tied to the exam itself—not to individual students. This means that even if multiple students need accommodations for the same exam, you only need to request one PIN for that exam.
- Share the PIN
- Faculty provide the PIN to the Testing Center and/or ADA office.
- Testing staff will enter the PIN for students who require accommodations.
Important Notes
- Entering the PIN completely bypasses Honorlock.
- No recording, secure browser, or other Honorlock proctoring features will be active.
- This option should only be used for approved ADA accommodations in coordination with Honorlock Support and ISU Disability Services.