Examination Policy

This Examination Policy establishes the rules, procedures, eligibility requirements, proctoring standards, identity verification process, passing requirements, re-examination rules, security violation consequences, certificate issuance standards, and appeals process for Food Safety Academy's online Food Handler certification examination.

The policy is designed to support fair assessment, examination integrity, identity assurance, certificate reliability, and compliance with applicable Canadian legal and regulatory expectations.

Students must meet all eligibility requirements before attempting the final examination.

To be eligible, a student must:

• Complete all required course modules before the examination is unlocked.
• Have a valid government-issued photo identification document.
• Have a working webcam.
• Share the entire computer screen (full monitor — not a window or browser tab) for the duration of the exam. Screen sharing is required before the exam can start; the platform enforces this.
• Use a single monitor. This is a student obligation. Where the browser reports an extended (multi-monitor) display, the platform blocks exam start until additional monitors are disconnected.
• Use a compatible desktop or laptop, browser, and stable internet connection when the course requires desktop-only.
• Be in a private, quiet location suitable for a proctored examination.
• Agree to the Terms of Service, Privacy Policy, and this Examination Policy.
• Complete the identity verification process before examination access is granted.

Food Safety Academy may deny, delay, suspend, or terminate examination access if eligibility requirements are not met.

Identity verification is required to protect certificate integrity and ensure that the registered student personally completes the examination.

Step 1: Government ID photo

Before the examination begins, the student captures a clear photo of a valid government-issued photo identification document (front / photo side). The name and photograph must be readable and suitable for verification. The student does not hold the ID in a selfie; the ID photo is a separate capture.

Step 2: Selfie

The student then provides a clear selfie (face only). Automated software (Amazon Rekognition) compares the ID photo to the selfie and checks that exactly one face is visible with acceptable quality. The software never decides the outcome. After limited retries, the student may continue even if the automated match is inconclusive; a human proctor reviews the result.

Step 3: Room scan and screen share

Before starting, the student completes an automatic room scan (several still photos while slowly panning the camera around the room). The system checks that the camera moved during the scan; it does not automatically assess what the photos show. A human reviewer inspects the room-scan frames.

The student must share their entire screen (full monitor). The platform will not start the exam until screen share of the full display is active. Students must use a single monitor; where the browser reports an extended display, exam start is blocked until additional monitors are disconnected.

Step 4: Session monitoring captures

During the examination the platform captures still images only — not continuous video and not audio:

• Webcam photos about every 30 seconds.
• Full-screen captures about every 30 seconds (from the shared screen).
• A final webcam capture on submit.

After the student submits, and only when the academic score is a pass, automated software (Amazon Rekognition) runs on a periodic sample of the webcam captures (not every frame). It compares the ID photo to the selfie, and checks sampled session photos so the examinee remains the same person alone in front of the camera (face count and face match). Alerts are for human review only. Everything else — including what the room-scan and screen frames show — is judged by a human proctor reviewing the complete chronological capture sequence. Automated analysis is a sampled support aid, not a substitute for that review.

Step 5: Human proctor review

Every exam that achieves a passing score receives human identity review before any certificate is issued. A trained proctor reviews the ID photo, selfie, room scan, webcam and screen captures, integrity events, and any software alerts before a certificate is released. Review is normally completed within 2 business days; the student is notified by email.

The final examination format is as follows:

• At least 8 hours of active learning before the exam is unlocked.
• 50 multiple-choice questions drawn from the course's published exam bank.
• A 60-minute time limit (accommodations may add limited extra minutes).
• Closed book examination.
• No external resources permitted.
• Fullscreen required, entire-screen share required, copy/paste and related shortcuts blocked, and window/tab/focus changes logged.
• Questions and answer order may be randomized.
• The examination must be completed by the registered student without assistance.

Students are responsible for ensuring that their device, internet connection, webcam, and examination environment are ready before starting.

The final examination is remotely proctored. There is no continuous video recording and no audio recording. Proctoring uses:

• A government ID photo and a separate selfie (compared automatically; decided by a human).
• A pre-exam room scan (still photos; motion checked automatically; content inspected by a human).
• Periodic still webcam photos and still full-screen captures about every 30 seconds during the exam.
• After submit (passing scores only), automated checks on a periodic sample of webcam captures that the examinee remains the same person alone in front of the camera.
• Logging of focus loss, fullscreen exits, and screen-share interruptions.

Automated software marks alerts from that sample; a trained human proctor reviews the complete capture sequence and decides. Every exam that achieves a passing score receives human identity review before any certificate is issued.

Proctor criteria and responsibilities

Each proctor must be:

• 19 years of age or older.
• Unrelated to the student by family and without a personal or financial interest in the student's result.
• Trained by Food Safety Academy on identity verification, integrity flags, and certificate release procedures.

The proctor reviews the government ID photo, selfie, room-scan frames, chronological webcam and screen captures, tab-switch and fullscreen-exit counts, exam duration, and integrity flags. For each pending review the proctor may:

• Approve — issue the certificate.
• Reject — deny the certificate for a documented integrity reason (taxonomy below).
• Request retake — free retake when identity evidence is incomplete, captures are insufficient, or a technical/platform failure occurred (not an identity accusation).
• Escalate — send the attempt to a second reviewer when the decision is uncertain.
• Revoke — after a certificate has already been issued, revoke it if a later integrity problem is found (documented reason emailed to the student; public verification then shows the certificate as revoked). Revocation is an exceptional remedy, not the primary control — primary control is human review of every passing exam before issuance.

Rejection reasons (closed taxonomy)

When rejecting, the proctor selects one of: identity does not match (ID ≠ selfie); ID document unreadable or invalid; another person present or assisting; unauthorized materials in view; student left frame or blocked camera; unauthorized screen activity; or other (with an internal note).

Student proctoring rules

Students must:

• Keep the webcam active during the examination.
• Remain visible and present for the full examination.
• Take the examination alone in a private, quiet location.
• Keep the examination browser active and visible (desktop or laptop when the course requires desktop-only).
• Avoid opening new tabs, browser windows, applications, communication tools, or external websites.
• Avoid using a phone, tablet, smartwatch, second computer, or second device.
• Avoid notes, books, printed materials, digital files, screenshots, recordings, or reference materials.
• Avoid speaking with, receiving help from, or being observed by another person.
• Avoid copying, photographing, recording, saving, or distributing exam content.
• Follow any additional on-screen proctoring instructions.

Tab switching and fullscreen exits are monitored and logged. Three or more violations of either type may result in rejection or a required retake.

Security violations and appeal

If a proctor finds a security or integrity violation, the attempt may be rejected, a retake required, or an already-issued certificate revoked. Students are notified by email with the reason. Students may appeal a rejection, certificate hold, revocation, or related decision within 10 business days by writing to support@foodsafetyacademy.ca with the subject line Exam appeal (see Appeals Process below).

Students must achieve a minimum score of 70% to pass the final examination.

For a 50-question examination, a passing score requires at least 35 correct answers out of 50 (35/50).

Your score is shown immediately after you submit the exam. Every exam that achieves a passing score receives human identity review before any certificate is issued. Review is normally completed within 2 business days. You will receive an email when the certificate is issued (or if the attempt is rejected or a retake is required).

Food Safety Academy allows re-examination according to the following rules:

• For Food Handler Certification, if you do not pass, you can retake the exam free of charge as many times as you need within your course access period (from enrollment activation; typically 30 days unless the course setting differs). There is no waiting period between attempts.
• Other courses may configure a maximum number of attempts and a minimum waiting period between attempts; when configured, those limits are enforced and disclosed before enrollment.
• Each attempt draws a new randomized set of examination questions.
• Retakes are included in enrollment at no additional cost while access remains active (and while any configured attempt allowance remains).
• If a course has a configured attempt limit and that limit is reached, or if course access expires before the student passes, the student may purchase the course again at the full course price to receive a new access period.

Food Safety Academy may require additional review, remediation, identity verification, or support before a retake is allowed. Retakes may be denied or suspended where there is evidence of fraud, impersonation, cheating, technical manipulation, or repeated policy violations.

Security violations are assessed according to severity, context, evidence, and examination integrity risk.

Minor Violations

Minor violations may include brief accidental conduct that does not appear to compromise examination integrity. A warning may be issued and the event may be noted in the student record.

Examples may include brief camera visibility issues, minor environmental interruptions, or short accidental browser focus changes.

Moderate Violations

Moderate violations may result in examination termination and the attempt being counted.

Examples may include repeated browser minimization, opening unauthorized tabs, using unauthorized applications, leaving the camera view, having unclear identity verification, or failing to comply with proctoring instructions.

Severe Violations

Severe violations include confirmed cheating, impersonation, fraud, intentional circumvention of proctoring, sharing exam content, using unauthorized assistance, or submitting false identity information.

Consequences may include permanent ban, no refund, certificate denial, certificate revocation, and notification to the relevant public health authority if a certificate has already been issued and the matter affects certificate validity or integrity.

Food Safety Academy maintains examination logs, identity records, and proctoring evidence as necessary to review and document suspected violations. Retention periods are stated in the Privacy Policy §8 and are summarized here:

• Exam records, proctor decisions, and certificate details: retained for the 5-year certificate validity period plus 3 years.
• Biometric data, government ID images, selfie images, webcam captures, screen captures, and room-scan photos: deleted 90 days after the proctor's decision (unless a longer period is required for an active investigation, appeal, suspected fraud, legal obligation, or regulatory request).

Certificates are issued to students who:

• Complete all required course modules.
• Pass the final examination with a score of 70% or higher (35/50 questions).
• Satisfy identity verification requirements.
• Comply with proctoring and examination rules.
• Have no unresolved fraud, misconduct, or certificate integrity concerns.

Every exam that achieves a passing score receives human identity review before any certificate is issued. Your score is shown immediately after you submit; the certificate itself is released only after proctor approval, normally within 2 business days, and you are notified by email. After issuance, the PDF is downloadable from the student account. If a later integrity problem is found, Food Safety Academy may revoke an already-issued certificate; revoked certificates show as revoked on public verification.

Each certificate includes a public verification URL or verification mechanism that allows third parties to confirm certificate validity. Verification shows certificate number, holder name, issue date, and expiry date — never the exam score. Certificates are valid for 5 years from the issue date unless revoked earlier for fraud, error, misconduct, or regulatory reasons.

Certificates are always available for download from the student dashboard at no additional cost. Students who need assistance accessing their certificate may contact support@foodsafetyacademy.ca at no charge.

Certificates are permanently available for download from the student account dashboard. Students may download their certificate at any time during the validity period at no cost. Students who cannot access their dashboard should contact support@foodsafetyacademy.ca for assistance.

Students may appeal an examination decision, proctoring violation, certificate hold, certificate denial, or certificate revocation by contacting:

support@foodsafetyacademy.ca

Use the subject line Exam appeal. Appeals must be submitted within 10 business days of the decision being communicated and must include the student's full name, account email, examination date, certificate number if applicable, a description of the issue, and any supporting information.

Food Safety Academy will review the appeal, relevant examination records, proctoring evidence, technical logs, identity verification materials, and applicable policies. FSA aims to respond within 5 business days of receiving a complete appeal.

The decision after review is final, subject to any rights or remedies available under applicable Canadian law.

Food Safety Academy | Whitehorse, Yukon | Version 1.1 | October 2026