On Tuesday, January 20, 2026, Respondus LockDown Browser will become available for all academic units at the University of Chicago. LockDown Browser is a software tool that prevents its users from navigating to other websites or programs while it is in use, thereby discouraging academic misconduct and providing heightened security for online exams. The optimal use cases for LockDown Browser are in-class quizzes, exams, and assignments that can be completed by students using their own computers, but that are still proctored in person by an instructor or TA.
LockDown Browser is integrated with Canvas. This means that you can create an exam in the form of a Canvas Quiz – using either Classic Quizzes or New Quizzes – and then enable LockDown Browser for use with that Quiz. When your students take the Quiz, they will be restricted to the Canvas Quiz environment for the duration, unless you specify particular sites they may visit using Advanced Settings. Certain common functions, such as copying and pasting between Canvas and other sites, printing, screen-capture, and right-clicking, will also be disabled for the duration of the Quiz. (Note that Advanced Settings allows you to enable a standard or scientific calculator in the LockDown Browser Toolbar for your students’ use. You can also enable a Print option in the toolbar if you wish them to print the exam screen.)
Enable LockDown Browser for a Canvas Quiz
To enable LockDown Browser for your Quiz, edit your Quiz in Canvas and follow the steps outlined in our KB article on LockDown Browser for faculty and instructors. Please note that you do not need to install LockDown Browser on your own device in order to enable it for a Canvas Quiz.
Prepare Your Students to Use LockDown Browser
Before your students will be able to complete a Canvas Quiz with LockDown Browser, they will first need to install the browser on their devices. You can direct them to our KB article on LockDown Browser for students for assistance with this process. (The IT Services TechBar on the first floor of the Regenstein Library will also offer students a limited number of loaner laptops with Respondus installed.)
To minimize the chances of technical difficulties during an exam with LockDown Browser, we encourage you to have your students first complete a practice Quiz before the exam in question. (They should complete the practice quiz at least one or two business days before the exam, so as to have adequate time to troubleshoot the issue or go to the ITS Help Desk if needed.) This could be a simple, one-question, ungraded Quiz for which you have enabled LockDown Browser. If possible, it should be of the same type as the exam – i.e. either a Classic or a New Quiz – and use the same settings. For example, if you will be using Advanced Settings to allow your students to visit a specified set of external websites during the exam, you should enable those sites for the practice Quiz as well. Your students can then report any issues they encounter, and they can also become familiar with how LockDown Browser works, reducing the likelihood of test anxiety.
Get Help with LockDown Browser
If you need assistance implementing LockDown Browser with your Canvas Quiz, Respondus offers helpful resources, in both text and video format. You are also welcome to contact Academic Technology Solutions for further assistance. You can email us, drop by our office hours, or book a consultation with an instructional designer.
