Dealing with Contract Cheating: A Question Of Attribution Thomas Lancaster & Robert Clarke Birmingham City University.

Dealing with Contract Cheating:A Question Of Attribution

Thomas Lancaster & Robert ClarkeBirmingham City University

Contract Cheating

Academic DishonestyDifferentiated from student plagiarism

Students get others to complete work on their behalfOften for a fee (essay mills/auction sites)

Can be carried out by “technologically savvy” students

Contract Cheating

Contract Cheating History

Previous HEA reported studies have focused on the use of the use of vWorker (formerly RentACoder) by students

15% of 2005 postings represented an attempt to cheatTypical student posted between 4 and 7 assignmentsEvidence of subcontractors found90% of assignment specifications related to Computing and

Information Technology

Contract Cheating

Contract Cheating Problems

Detection of contract cheating is difficultOriginal work is produced for a studentNot detected by TurnItIn

Acceptable evidence that work is unoriginal is hard to gather

Attribution of a source institution by a detective is challengingCommon assignments could be multiply sourcedMany assignment specifications are only internally available

Contract Cheating

Contract Cheating 2012 Style

“The Commercialisation Of Cheating”

Contract Cheating

EssayBay

Note – Study relates to 627 postings made on EssayBay between March and July 2010Around 10% of all postings made during that period

Site format currently unavailable due to restructuringExamples collected during that period

Contract Cheating

About EssayBay “EssayBay is a new worldwide service launched 1st September 2007 created with

you - the customer - firmly in mind. We wanted to make finding a great writer quick and easy, something that traditional essay companies simply cannot offer.

Set up by Barclay Littlewood and his team at the UK essay company Academic Answers Ltd, Essay Bay offers a dramatic improvement to the quality of the custom essay and term paper market, through direct competition of high quality writers, feedback viewable by all and communication directly between the writer and buyer, revolutionising the way people buy custom writing online.

For the first time ever EssayBay connects writers with buyers that need custom essays, term papers, theses and dissertations and allows writers to offer their services directly based on the strength of their reputation and past results. Much like an auction, projects are posted by buyers, and interested writers bid on them. Buyers can see the qualifications of the writer, the guarantees they offer, and the feedback they have received from other buyers, before they choose to accept a bid.”

From http://essaybay.com/about.php

Essaybay – Buyers Information“At last! Buy essay and term papers with complete confidence!

Pay only if you find the writer you want!

Money held in escrow - no risk.

Stay in touch with your writer.

Support team here if you need us!

Creating your EssayBay account is free and easy. You can post as many projects as you like without any obligation. You don't have to accept any bids at all unless you are totally happy!

EssayBay was born for smart customers like you! Buyers that like to know what they are getting before they pay!

Once you do choose a writer, we place your money safely in an escrow account. Once you get your work, you release it as soon as you are satisfied. No risk, no hassles - just great work!

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From http://www.essaybay.com/essay-buyers.php

Sample EssayBay posting

Writer selectedFee placed in escrow account

Ratings show previous postings have been made

Multiple subject areas can be

selected

Level and standard required can be defined

“PhD” Research Proposal #06979 (traced)

Topic: Examining human resource management (HRM) practices across firms: implications for practice

Description: The intensification of such trends as globalisation and outsourcing has resulted in the emergence of new organisational forms of business; e.g. the permeable organisation, the networked organisation, and the project-based organisation. Increasingly, it is inadequate to analyse business management practices solely at the firm-level; these new organisational forms challenge traditional notions of hierarchy, power and control, and create a need to reconceptualise management practices especially across firms.

Biology #05768

Experiment for Human Biology, i have to write experiment for human biology and of course do this, all work done just needs tidying up for me and when experiment done conclusion written

Attached a 6 page, partly completed write-up of an experiment (extract below)

An Enzyme is a protein that catalyses a specific reaction in the body. In effect the enzyme “speeds up” the rate at which that reaction would occur. The Enzyme itself will remain unchanged by the process. Metabolism within the body involves many chemical reactions which are virtually all catalysed by an enzyme. The separate reactions can be seen as steps upon a pathway, each needed in sequence so that a specific function can be performed. As such enzymes can be seen as a control mechanism for the body’s metabolism. These reactions can be classed as either Anabolic (making things) or Catabolic (breaking things down)Enzymes are globular protein molecules with a complex 3D shape, within which is an area termed, “the active site”. Here another specific molecule known as the “substrate”, which has an identical complimentary shape can temporarily bond to the enzyme in a similar manner to a “lock and key” being uniquely matched. Now known as the Enzyme-substrate complex, a catalysed reaction can occur, such as breaking down starch as in the case of Amylase. When this individual reaction is finished the product leaves the active site which is then able to receive another substrate and repeat the process many times.All these reactions are aimed at changing the substrate to a product. To do so an initial input of energy is required known as the activation energy. It is known that higher temperatures increase the energy of each molecule and that therefore activation energy is affected by heat. In effect, heating the substrate briefly will produce the activation energy needed to bring about the reaction. However the problem for mammals such as humans is that increased body temperature can in fact be harmful. Enzymes overcome this problem as they can catalyse the substrate by the needed activation energy at a decreased level. This allows the reaction to take place without a dangerous increase in temperature.

Literature # 06850 (not traced)Compose an eight-page Final Essay highlighting an element of literature (theme, character,

setting, conflicts, etc.) by using your choice of at least three (3) works from two genres to support your ideas. (You could choose two poems and a play; two short stories and a poem, a poem, a play, and a story, etc.) A scholarly study of literature connects or compares works from different genres by using one literary element.

Solutions posted on StudentOfFortune, CourseHero, JustAnswer etc (About 878 results)48 - Englishwww.coursehero.com/tutors/problems/English/471/A scholarly study of literature connects or compares works from different genres by using one literary element. This is your assignment: find a way to connect or ...

ENG 125 Ashford University Week 3 Rough Draft - StudentOfFortune ...studentoffortune.com/.../ENG-125-Ashford-University-Week-3-Rou...A scholarly study of literature connects or compares works from different genres by using one literary element. This is your assignment: find a way to connect or ...

Intro to Literature Class - StudentOfFortune.comstudentoffortune.com/question/272042/Intro-to-Literature-Class5 Feb 2010 – A scholarly study of literature connects or compares works from different genres by using one literary element. This is your assignment: find a ...

Foreshadowing and Irony in Flannery O'Connor's Work Term Paperswww.papermasters.com › ... › American LiteratureA scholarly study of literature connects or compares works from different genres by using one literary element. This may be difficult but find a way to connect or ...

a Scholarly Study Of Literature Connects Or Compares wOrks From ...www.oppapers.com/.../a-scholarly-study-of-literature-connects-or-co...20+ items – ... a Scholarly Study Of Literature Connects Or Compares wOrks ...Literature And My CommunityComparative Study Of Diesel Analysis By Ftir, Ftnir And Ft-Raman ...

Stuck on Literature homework.. Help? - Yahoo! Answersanswers.yahoo.com › ... › Homework Help15 Mar 2010 – A scholarly study of literature connects or compares works from different genres by using one literary element. This is your assignment: find a ...

Theology #06360 (not traced)

The paper should focus on the discrete aspect of Karol Wojtyla/John Paul II's anthropology or ethics. This is a reflection paper that analyzes his book "Love and Responsibility" and Wojtyla's sexual ethic. Choose some aspect of "Love and Responsibility" (such as the personalistic norm, the nature of love, or chastity etc) to write about and then also demonstrate the issue's relationship to anthropology

I am not the smartest student in the class so please make the paper believable (a 80%-90% grade range)

“sweetestgracie” posted 3 assignments (not traceable)The history of the Idea of a World or Universal Government

I wanted to give the writer the choice of topic for the paper. I have a list of 100 possible topics to choose from. I need a research proposel by saturday, but the actual paper isn't due for 3 more weeks. The research paper has to be 6-8 pages in body and have a bibliography with at least 5 scholarly sources.

2 page paper on something in US History since 1877 and why it is important. I am not picky, but it needs to have scholarly resources and be 2 FULL pages of body and have a bibliography page. It needs to be in Chicago Manuel style format. It is due Sunday July 4th. I would like to have it on July 3rd because I will be out of town on the 4th. Thank you

Research Paper Proposal Name: Your name Class: Your class Title: Title of your paper Subject: Subject of your paper Thesis Statement: Thesis statement (i.e. The sentence or two that will sum up what your paper is about) Outline: Main points you will discuss in your paper. Sources (you need at least 5): What books, websites, articles, etc will you use?

EssayBay Subjects

Contract Cheating

Prolific Writers

These aliases provided over 50% of the solutions on EssayBayIt is likely that some represent teams of writers

Essaybay Writer

girlfriday0104

Apakshit

bmwriter

homework helper

rafia

Expert Writer

Jane-82

johnny_outsmart

Acdemicwriter

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50

Number of “commissions” accepted

Out of 627 postings made in the sample period, 345 had “writers” selected

Top 20 BuyersEach of these “buyers” posted 5 or more assignments

They account for 25% of the postings made in the sample

Most are likely to be “third-party sub-contractors”

kittsubasabloodmoney81

aldomar1212

1951euwilliams

manchester69sarobinsy2k_alk

crombie1976oggiedan

jaypowersurg

tiffanyeylt666

whackyjameslolab

dc523680junjun6858

chunjt

0 5 10 15 20 25 30Number of assignments posted

323 individuals made627 postings in the sample period

EssayBay Analysis

71.0% of postings at undergraduate level21.2% at Masters level

23.7% of postings “attributable”Source institution identifiable

Contract Cheating

Proposed Attributability Factors

Searchability – the extent to which an assignment specification or the institution from which its taken can be found online

Individuality – how well an assignment specification can be distinguished from others on a similar topic

Contract Cheating

To Attribute An Assignment SpecificationHigh values are needed for both searchability and

individualityGenerally, many assignment specifications are not produced in this

way

Contract Cheating

Recommendations

Continue to monitor the “latest trends” in online cheatingUse assessment practices that limit the chance to cheat

and the usefulness of cheatingEncourage all institutions and departments to consider

attributabilityNo reuse of old assignment specifications/textbook examplesMake assignment specifications searchable on Google or TurnItInUse unique tagsUse visible and invisible watermarks

Contract Cheating

Contract Cheating Special Interest Group

Funded by HEA Computer Science DisciplineFirst Meeting:Friday 22 June 2012Birmingham City University

Contact – [email protected]

Contract Cheating

Thank You

Any Questions?

Contract Cheating

More Examples

The examples are not part of the presentation, but are included to illustrate the range of assignment specifications observed on EssayBay

Contract Cheating

Anthropology #06942 (not traced) Topic: a.) Select a topic or issue you would find within a culture (i.e.

art forms, health issues, family relations, hairstyles, food, symbolism, beliefs). Select any topic that you think could capture your interest: warfare, transportation, political systems, money, styles of dress – there is no limit. b.) Once you have selected a topic or issue, select a living culture and discuss your selected topic or issue within that culture. For instance, you may be interested in the rise of diabetes in indigenous people such as the Kayapo, or the educational boundaries of women in the Middle East. Or you may compare and contrast two cultures with the same issue, such as the role of adolescence in the United States and China, or the comparison between the Amish consumption and labor to that of their neighboring cities. Be sure to choose a culture(s) appropriate for a study within cultural anthropology (a study of living people).

Thesis: Develop a clear thesis statement/topic sentence. This will become the point or perspective you will compare or discuss in the paper.

Linguistics #05133 (traced) Write an essay in answer to ONE 1 of the questions on Section 1, Section 2

OR Section 3 of the sample exam paper.

SECTION 1 PRESERVATION OF LANGUAGE AND LANGUAGE-PLANNING 1.‘The perceived need to protect the French language is not new.’ Discuss. 2.‘The Loi Toubon masquerades as consumer protection, but its purpose lies elsewhere.’ Discuss.

SECTION 2 CONTRASTING SPOKEN AND WRITTEN FRENCH Examples from modern French should be given, transcribed using the International Phonetic Alphabet where appropriate. 4. ‘Gender and number are marked in spoken and written French, but to different extents and following different rules.’ Discuss. 5. ‘Inflexional changes in written French often fail to be made in spoken French.’ Discuss. 6. ‘Spoken and written French make use of a range of different morpheme types in their marking of gender and number.’ Discuss.

SECTION 3 COORDINATION IN SPEECH Examples from modern French should be given, transcribed using the International Phonetic Alphabet where appropriate. 7. Assess the impact of consonantal assimilation on the pronunciation of French today. 8. ‘Syllables are central to any understanding of assimilation.’ Discuss. 9. Discuss the influence of register on the types of assimilation likely to occur in spoken French.

Theatre Studies #07010

"descibe and critique key problems documentarians face in dealing with tensions between reality and fiction?“

Traced through course notes attached to posting

Criminology #06545 (traced)Critiquing Published Research ON "SELF HELP AS AN EXPLANATION FOR

VIOLENCE AMONG FEMALE INMATES BY M.DYAN MCGUIRE!! methodological review THESE POINTS HAVE TO BE INCLUDED OTHERWISE NO PAYMENT!!!!

Scope and Objectives: What are the objectives of the study? Do these change over time? (This may be particularly relevant if the methodological approach is qualitative, which should be sufficiently flexible to incorporate issues arising in the conduct of the research that may not have been considered at the planning stage.) Is the study attempting to test a particular theory or is it theory building? What is the theoretical context and is this obvious? (Perhaps the study is more descriptive and the theoretical context is less obvious.)

2.Methods Used Here we are looking at the manner in which the research was designed and the data collected. What was the population? How was the sample selected? Which technique was used? What type of data was collected, qualitative, quantitative or both? What method was used (survey, documentary analysis etc.)? What information is given about the process of data collection, for example where and how were interviews conducted? How was the data analysed and how is it presented and summarised in the article?

Education #01384 (Traced but no contact info found)SUBDOMAIN 601.3 - DIVERSITY & INCLUSION SUBDOMAIN 601.4 - SCHOOLS & SOCIETY

Competency 601.3.3: Cultural Awareness, Understanding, and Acceptance Full text below ....

Traced to WGU.EDU

5 other WGU assignments detected on Essaybay during the sampling period

Education #01384 (Google search)Google finds multiple matches to this assignment (March 2012)

Searched on term “Create a concept map or an outline for each culture”

Includes pre-written solutions

Examples below (About 918 results)Important Aspects of Each Culture Research Paper | Free Term ...www.papermasters.com › ... › History Term PapersCreate a concept map or an outline for EACH culture. Identify common themes, concepts, and ideas. For example, your concept map or outline may include such ...

n this task, you will use selected reso - StudentOfFortune.comstudentoffortune.com/question/.../In-this-task-you-will-use-selected-r...30 Nov 2011 – C. Create a concept map or an outline for each culture (two maps or outlines total). Each concept map or outline should represent at least three ...

Political Science | assignmentHOLE.com: Assignment Help | Page 5https://www.assignmenthole.com/category/political-science/page/5/3 Nov 2009 – Create a concept map or an outline for each culture (two maps or outlines total) and upload them with your research paper. Each concept map ...

hi! looking for help on an essay:brcompetency 601.3.3: cultural ...expresshelpline.com/support-question-503963.html... which are available on the internet at sites indicated by *.gov rather than *.com or *.edu.br brc. create a concept map or an outline for each culture (two maps ...

Minority Culture Essay | Academic Writingwww.freelancer.co.uk/projects/.../Minority-Culture-Essay.htmlC. Create a concept map or an outline for each culture (two maps or outlines total) and upload them with your research paper. Each concept map or outline ...

Information Technology # 06311 (traced)Contents of attachmentAnalyse the regulatory problems and options relating to your chosen issue in the light of the positions of

different actors and what you have learned about regulatory principles and what influences regulatory outcomes.

 Marks will be awarded for:good structure and coherent development of an argumentgeneral themes and theories being illustrated by specific examplesevaluation of both technical and socio-economic factorsuse of your own words and thoughts to explain the ideas in the essayevidence of wide reading and research, shown through a bibliography and appropriate references in the text So we only have to choose one topic, access, security, openness or diversity.The PDF file has other references that you can refer to!!You can use my Athens account to find more resources and lecture notes can be supplied to give you a brief

description of what the module is about!!The same person went on to post 6 assignments on Essaybay during sample period

Two of these assignments were also posted by another student

Masters level (Architecture) # 06041 (traced)

This is a pilot study for an essay proposal I have made. We are supposed to make an essay for this subject at the end of the semester and the definition of the pilot study is:

A small-sized paper (1,000 w + footnotes & bib.), on a core area of your project. For example, if you want to review a scholar’s theory manifested in three books, you may choose to focus on one book or a core part of the book first; while the rest may be covered in the final paper. Pilot study serves as a ‘test’; it provides an experiment and allows you to change or modify the shape of your final project (the scope, the topic, the question etc).

Nursing degree # 07029 traced

research based proposal to introduce patient acuity and dependency tools within nhs trust based on current research. Identification of themes identified due to low staffing

Traced by details in attachment

Business studies # 06724 (not traced)Take Home Exam

An Innocent Abroad: Fred Bailey in Tokyo Case Study Analysis based on Cross Cultural Management view point (using Hofstede's Cultural Indices and MBI Frame work)

Google finds About 181,000 results – examples:-

Essay: An Innocent Abroad -A Case Study in Cross-Cultural ...www.coursework.info › GCSE › Business Studies › People in BusinessSimilarYou +1'd this publicly. Undo28 Jan 2005 – here's a short preview of this essay with formatting removed for you to read. Have a little read: ... Fred Bailey: An Innocent Abroad -A Case ...

Essay: An Innocent Abroad Fred Bailey in Tokyospeedyessay.com/essay-an-innocent-abroad-fred-bailey-in-tokyo/CachedYou +1'd this publicly. UndoThis case study talks about an expatriate employee Fred Bailey's experience during his assignment in Japan. Fred's company offers him a proposition that is ...

Assignments for 6K:201dollar.biz.uiowa.edu/col/ye/6k201/assignment.htmlCached - SimilarYou +1'd this publicly. UndoReading: Fred Bailey: An Innocent Abroad ... Is there anything you could do to prepare Fred Bailey differently in "Fred Bailey: An Innocent Abroad"? Research a ... PDF] 

Faculty of Business Administration Memorial University of ...www.busi.mun.ca/sksaha/b9020/B9020_CO_W2011.pdfYou +1'd this publicly. UndoFile Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat - Quick ViewCompetitive Frontiers: Women Managing Across Borders. (Reading # 2.3, MOS ). Case Analysis: Case 2.3, Fred Bailey: An Innocent Abroad on (MOS). Case 2.2 ...

BMA777 International Human Resource Management Semester 2 ...www.utas.edu.au/mgmt/Documents/.../BMA777_Unit_Outline.pdfSimilarYou +1'd this publicly. UndoFile Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat - Quick Viewown; for example downloading an essay from a cheat site, copying another student's .... FRED BAILEY: AN INNOCENT ABROAD—A CASE STUDY IN CROSS- ...