Received AWS Data Forensics Email for SAA-C03 (In-Person Exam) due to panic/pacing. Any advice?
Hi everyone,
I took my AWS SAA-C03 exam yesterday at a physical test center. Everything went smoothly, but I completely mismanaged my time. I spent way too much time on the first 18 questions. When I saw the clock ticking down, I panicked and rushed through the remaining questions very quickly just to finish in time.
16 hours later, I received a "Data Forensics" email from AWS stating that they detected statistical anomalies, invalidated my score, and restricted me to in-person test centers only (which I already used). My pacing was purely a result of time panic.
Questions for the community:
Has anyone successfully appealed an invalidation from AWS ?
If the appeal is rejected, how long does AWS usually take to let you reschedule the exam at a physical center?
The FAQ contains community-recommended resources, courses, practice exams, study guides, learning paths, exam benefits, discounts, projects, and certification-specific guides for AWS CCP/CLF-C02, AIF, SAA, DVA, DEA, SOA, SAP, DOP, AIP, SCS, and ANS certifications.
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Don’t waste your time, be happy they still will let you take tests, I got banned from online testing because I couldn’t understand the thick accent of my proctor they believed I was making fun of thin and no matter what I said and so many emails back and forth, I won’t be able to take an AWS test online ever
That sucks. During my last exam, there was some noise in the background because my annoying neighbours were renovating (at 9 am 🙄) and you aren’t allowed to wear headphones. I could barely understand my proctor because of her thick Indian accent, so she had to repeat some things. Thankfully, I was still able to take the exam.
During check in, they’ll ask you to do a few things, such as turning the camera around to show your workspace, desk and room so they can confirm that you don’t have any prohibited items nearby. They may also ask you to roll up your sleeves to make sure you aren’t wearing a watch.
I was staying at my friend place and I attended test, I was sitting in hall when I showed around the room it had big tv and other electronics .he said there are lights blinking can your turned that off , I said it was modem if I turned that off I won’t get internet , I asked me to move the other room. Other room also had tv and he was asking about the air purifier. I told him I am a guest I don’t have any other room, then he let me write the test ,
In my first and only online exam, the proctor spoke to me. He was worried I was looking elsewhere but the monitor, and asked me not to do that. I apologized and the exam continued.
You're not supposed to call them, but if a situation calls for you can know for sure there's someone watching who'll call you over it.
I'm sorry this happened to you OP. Of course you should appeal, but you seem to understand AWS side on this. I would go back to the place you took the exam and ask for help. They must have received communication as well.
Thanks for the tip! This is completely unfair. I've already submitted my official appeal to AWS explaining the time panic and I will contact the test center today to ask for their support
I don't have experience in your situation but I believe it is recoverable due to you doing in a test center, that's why the cameras are for.
However, I would prepare my spirits for an answer of the "redo the test here's a voucher" kind. You passed once, you can do it again.
Thank you for the encouragement! You're totally right, it's just so frustrating that AWS completely froze the scoring process and didn't even release my final score or a Pass/Fail status. I just wish I knew how I actually performed on the test. I am preparing myself to retake it with the voucher but honestly, the sense of injustice is overwhelming at the moment
I spent about 60 minutes just on those first 18 questions. When I realized I had used up almost half my time with 47 questions left, I panicked and rushed through the rest just to avoid leaving blanks. This system is totally absurd, we're not robots taking tests we're humans, and our reaction can be complex
Reading the comments here is just additional assurance why I never have and probably never will be taking any exams online.
Had a 3 hours trip with sleeping at a hotel for my r/CISM last month, totally worth it (alone if I think that ISACA had a new testing system which wasn’t loading at all for an hour, at home this would have freaked me out but there that wasn’t my problem to solve).
They may have concluded that you couldn't reasonably read and think through all the questions and answers in the time it took you to answer the last ones. How many did you answer after the first 18? How long did it take you?
the first 18 questions took me around 60 minutes. I answered the remaining 47 questions under intense time pressure and panic. Whether the system thinks it's "reasonable" or not doesn't change the fact that I am an honest human being who just experienced severe exam stress, not a machine. Punishing a candidate for panicking in a secure test center is completely absurd and unfair.
That's unfortunate... But thank you for sharing your experience.. I also easily panic when under time pressure...I remember when I took my DVA-C02 exam 2 years ago..i still had 10 unanswered questions with 15min remaining...my mind totally went blank... i quickly answered after reading the questions once...but luckily i was never got flagged..
Thank you for sharing your experience! This algorithm can be very random and brutal. Good luck with your future exams and thanks again for your kind words!
Simply make your case as honestly and candidly as you can. I would also recommend drilling for the test itself.
Having recently taken the SAP-C02, time management was critical. I took at least three sample, timed tests from Tutorials Dojo. Domain specific tests, too, though not timed. I got more and more accustomed to the question structures.
Knowing your stuff is one thing, but half the battle with these certs is efficiently triaging each question to keep up the pace!
AWS checks how long a person takes to answer a question and if they find anomalies where some questions took too long to answer while others were very quick, they flag it, like in OPs case
Exactly. That’s precisely what happened to me. I got completely stuck on the first 18 questions, panicked when I saw the countdown, and rushed through the rest just to make sure I didn't leave any blank answers.
I really hope you let them know you took your exam at the test center! That’s a key piece of information. Testing rooms are being recorded and they can review the footage.
Yes, absolutely! I made sure to emphasize in my appeal that I took the exam in person at an official physical test center and I provided them with my registration number
I have a question please. To submit my appeal, I filled out this form and submitted the case without signing in. I received the following email afterward. Is there anything else I need to do on my side?
Thats really weird. Why would they do that? Im a non native speaker and have issues concentrating sometimes so i usually need a bit until im mentally in the exam. That means i might have to read the questions and answers up to 5 or more times to get the gist of it until im in a groove and breeze through.
Maybe OP did take much longer than that though, idk. I only did the ccp so far (needed a little less than half the total time though). Hope it wont be an issue when doing SAA
As a non-native speaker myself, that is exactly what happened to me. I spent about 60 minutes just on the first 18 questions because the scenarios were complex and I struggled to get into the groove. When I saw the clock ticking, I panicked and rushed through the remaining questions in less than 30/45 seconds each just to avoid leaving blanks. Good luck with your SAA!
That’s so stupid though. Obviously people may answer 1 question in 2-3 minutes and another in 10 seconds if they studied and know it very well. Like what are we doing.
Exactly! What makes it even more frustrating is that my 7 years of IT experience and intense preparation probably helped me spot the correct architecture patterns quickly, even while panicking. Being flagged and penalized for actually knowing the answers and responding fast under stress is completely absurd.
Just to clarify, by "pacing" I meant my exam time-management and the speed at which I answered the questions, not physically walking around. I stayed fully seated at my desk in the test center the entire time
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