What is Honorlock?
Honorlock is a remote proctoring service that protects online exams for schools and institutions. In Honorlock's own words, its software 'monitors your exam session and alerts a live test proctor if it detects any problems' - which means you are not watched by a human for the entire exam. When the AI raises something, a trained proctor reviews the situation and can enter your session by chat to get you back on track.
For most students there is no software download: Honorlock runs in the Google Chrome browser through the Honorlock Chrome extension, inside your school's normal learning management system. You need a working webcam, a microphone, an internet connection, Chrome, and the extension.
The AI-first, pop-in-second model
Honorlock's monitoring design is deliberately two-stage. First, what it calls multi-layered AI monitors your video, audio, and desktop activity during the exam, while blocking secondary devices, unauthorized AI tools, and proxy testing. Second, instead of every flag instantly interrupting you, a trained proctor reviews the flag in real time - Honorlock says this filters out low-value noise and accounts for approved accommodations.
If the proctor judges the situation serious, they 'pop in' through a one-to-one chat inside your exam session. Honorlock's pitch is that this catches real violations without the anxiety of a stranger watching your every minute - and it says its proctoring team is trained by a nationally certified counselor and educator.
What the pre-exam check-in verifies
Before the exam starts, Honorlock walks you through what it calls a quick 60-second pre-test checklist. Two checks matter most. First, a room scan: you use your webcam to show the space around you, confirming no one else is present and no external resources are in reach. Second, identity verification: you take a picture of yourself and of your photo ID with the webcam.
There is no separate scheduling step - Honorlock says you can take your exam whenever you are ready, with live human support available 24/7/365 if something technical gets in the way.
What BrowserGuard restricts during the exam
BrowserGuard is Honorlock's browser-lockdown layer. Per Honorlock's product page, it secures the exam by blocking and flagging unauthorized websites, browser tabs, and applications, disabling certain keyboard shortcuts and functions, removing toolbar and menu options, and blocking and flagging attempts to minimize the exam window - all while recording your desktop during the session.
It is not purely restrictive: instructors can allow-list specific websites and applications you genuinely need - a reference page or an approved calculator - while everything else stays blocked. Think of it as a locked browser with a short, deliberate exceptions list.
What gets recorded and reviewed
Two recording layers run during an Honorlock exam: your webcam session (video and audio, monitored by the AI) and your desktop activity (recorded by BrowserGuard). Afterward, Honorlock gives administrators time-stamped reports that point directly to verified incidents, and says it filters irrelevant flags before they ever reach your instructor's desk.
That review design matters for you as a test taker: a dog barking or a stretch is not supposed to become an accusation, because a human reviews context before anything escalates.
Search & Destroy: the layer aimed at leaked questions
One Honorlock feature does not watch you at all - it watches the internet. Search & Destroy scans the web to identify exam questions that have been shared online, shows instructors when their questions have been compromised, and lets them update the question or send a one-click content-removal request.
For test takers the practical meaning is simple: looking up a leaked copy of your exam is less likely to match what is actually on it, because institutions are alerted to leaks and can rotate content.
The published setup requirements
For the standard student flow, Honorlock publishes a short list: a functioning webcam and microphone, an internet connection, the Google Chrome browser, and the Honorlock Chrome extension. Most students download nothing else, and you start from your school's learning management system as usual.
If your school uses Honorlock, the safest preparation is boring: test your webcam and microphone ahead of time, clear the room and desk, have your photo ID within reach, and close everything on the computer you do not need.
If the Sitting Itself Is the Problem
Knowing the published rules is one thing; sitting a monitored, recorded exam is another. Exam Assist exists for exactly that gap - we handle online exam sittings end to end, and the service fee is due only after your agreed result posts. Send your exam, your window, and your deadline, and you will get an honest feasibility answer first.
If you want the broader picture first, our guides to how online proctoring works and the comparison of online proctoring software explain how Honorlock's AI-plus-pop-in model differs from always-live proctoring, and our Honorlock exam help page covers the service side.