The BlackTom AI application shows test answers for over 800 courses at Ohio State. Credit: Lily Pace | Managing Campus Editor
As finals week is ending, an artificial-intelligence application claims it can bypass proctored exams and have answers to quizzes, tests and exams for over 800 courses at Ohio State.
The app, BlackTom AI, can go unnoticed during proctored exams to answer multiple-choice questions and write answers for the test taker, according to Tom, the website’s chat bot. The application offers a subscription fee for different levels of service, from free to $200 a month.
The app was developed in 2022 in Singapore, according to Tom. The chat feature is powered by chatwoot, an AI support desk and knowledge base that has been developing since 2016.
Students only have to click submit after the answers are filled in, according to its website. The ultimate plan of the program also simulates human typing and mouse movement, making it more difficult for professors, proctors or graders to recognize the AI.
“While AI may be a new tool, it’s important to remember that the obligation to academic integrity is not new,” said Chris Booker, university spokesperson, in a statement. “All students have important obligations under the Code of Student Conduct to complete all academic and scholarly activities with fairness and honesty.”
BlackTom’s chat bot described the program as a “built-in learning helper, not an external cheating tool.”
Ohio State announced last August that the university would be switching from Proctorio to Honorlock, an AI tracking software for monitoring test takers, per prior Lantern reporting.
On Dec. 12, the university expanded exam monitoring with the Honorlock app to allow instructors to block more AI-based apps that students could have installed on their computer, according to Ohio State’s Office of Technology and Digital Innovation website.
The department noted that the Honorlock app still has limitations, and encourages instructors to watch every recording to make sure that course policy is being followed.
However, BlackTom is fully applicable to Honorlock, with the gold and platinum membership users able to add the Chrome extension, and ultimate subscribers can add a desktop software, according to its website. The bot said that since it works within the browser, it functions as any other learning extension.
“You can use our tool safely even if your test is on Canvas and proctored by Honorlock,” the chatbot, Tom, said.
This November, BlackTom launched more AI features, from a writing assistant to its homework helper, offered through a free gold membership from the site.
BlackTom has four different membership tiers: free, gold, platinum and ultimate, all which range in features and pricing. The gold membership is currently being offered for free, with a normal price of about $40 per month, according to its website.
Their ultimate membership, priced at around $200 a month, gives users access to the program’s “ultimate question bank,” which features practice exercises, past papers and mock exams, according to its website.
On Nov. 11, the app launched a refer-a-friend event to encourage users to invite their friends to earn “Tom Coins,” and an 80 percent discount for new and returning users, according to its website.
Tom Coins are a form of currency on the site, with 10 coins equating to a little more than a U.S. dollar, allowing users to offset up to 20 percent of the membership price, according to its website.
Despite being used as a way to answer questions, cheat on exams and be used instead of studying, the chat bot encourages users to “always make sure to follow [their] institution’s academic integrity policies.”
“There may be different policies within courses for AI use, just as there are differences in course policies for absences, late work, or collaboration with other students,” Booker said. “As a result, AI tools should be used only with the explicit and clear permission of each individual instructor, and then only in the ways allowed by the instructor.”
Booker also said that students should be aware that “software or applications that aid in violating the Student Code of Conduct can also create security vulnerabilities for their personal computers.”
This story was updated Dec. 20 at 12:48 p.m. to add information about cybersecurity protections using the platform.
