AI Overlay for Pearson VUE OnVUE - AWS, Cisco, CompTIA, Microsoft on Mac
Pearson VUE OnVUE is the dominant online-delivery channel for high-stakes IT certifications worldwide. AWS, Microsoft, Cisco, CompTIA, Oracle, ISACA, EC-Council, and PMP all route their remote sittings through the same OnVUE secure-browser app and live human proctor.
OnVUE on Mac is a notarized native binary, not a browser extension. On launch it forces background apps closed, blocks task switching, captures the screen via ScreenCaptureKit on macOS 12.3+, and streams the resulting video plus webcam and microphone over WebRTC to a live human proctor. The proctor watches your exam in real time and can pause, warn, or revoke the session. OnVUE also enumerates running processes before launch looking for known screen-share apps, remote-desktop tools, and VM indicators.
Key points
- OnVUE captures via ScreenCaptureKit on macOS 12.3+ and CGDisplayStream on older systems; both APIs honor per-window privacy.
- AWS, Microsoft, Cisco, CompTIA, Oracle, ISACA, EC-Council, ITIL, and PMP all deliver online through the same OnVUE binary.
- OnVUE actively detects VMs via CPUID hypervisor bits, VMware tools artifacts, and BIOS hardware fingerprints; running native on bare metal avoids all of that.
- Permissions required: Camera, Microphone, Automation, Input Monitoring, and Screen Recording in System Settings.
- External monitors and secondary displays are blocked by OnVUE; use the built-in display only and the overlay still works.
How it works
┌── macOS host ─────────────────────────────────┐ │ ┌── proctor desktop app ───────┐ │ │ │ Calls ScreenCaptureKit / │ ← misses │ │ │ CGWindowListCreateImage │ flagged │ │ └──────────────────────────────┘ windows │ │ │ │ ┌── LDBypass overlay window ───┐ │ │ │ sharingType = .none │ ← invisible │ │ └──────────────────────────────┘ to capture│ └───────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Compatibility on Mac
| macOS 14 Sonoma+ | Yes (required for window-privacy API) | ✓ |
| Apple Silicon (M1/M2/M3/M4) | Native arm64 build | ✓ |
| Intel Macs (2019+) | Universal binary supported | ✓ |
| OnVUE for Mac | macOS 12.3+ for ScreenCaptureKit path | ✓ |
| Apple Silicon native | OnVUE ships arm64 since 2023 | ✓ |
| macOS Sonoma 14 | Officially supported in 2026 OnVUE builds | ✓ |
| External monitors | OnVUE refuses to launch with them attached | ✗ |
Common questions
How does OnVUE detect screen-sharing tools, and will it detect LDBypass?
OnVUE walks the process list before launch matching against known bundle IDs and binary names. LDBypass ships with a randomized name per build.
Does the live proctor see anything different on their side?
No. The proctor receives the WebRTC stream OnVUE constructs after ScreenCaptureKit has filtered the flagged window out.
What about the room scan at check-in?
The room scan is a one-shot 360-degree video from your phone or laptop camera. Close the overlay window during the scan.
Will OnVUE flag me for looking down while reading the overlay?
OnVUE gaze tracking watches whether your eyes leave the screen, not where on the screen they look. Reading the overlay keeps your eyes pointed at the monitor.
Does it work on AWS Solutions Architect Associate?
Yes. AWS-SAA-C03, all AWS Specialty exams, and AWS Cloud Practitioner all run on the same OnVUE codebase.