Release notes: March 7, 2026

Screen reader support for the new candidate interface

The new candidate interface is now screen reader accessible and aligned with WCAG 2.1 AA guidelines. It has been tested on VoiceOver (Mac), NVDA (Windows), and Orca (Linux).

This update focuses on the following accessibility improvements:

• You can navigate MCQ, Subjective, and Programming questions using the keyboard.
• You can use skip navigation links for faster traversal.
• Your screen reader announces timers, recording, and question changes.
• You can experience improved focus handling across dialogs, modals, and dynamic content.

Integrity score calculation improvements

We have improved the process for calculating integrity scores by introducing an event-driven approach. Integrity scores are now generated only after all proctoring checks, such as snapshots and plagiarism analysis, are completed, ensuring the score remains stable once available. This change improves the reliability and consistency of integrity scores, as they will no longer change after being generated. 

Virtual waiting room for the Assessment platform

HackerEarth Assessment has introduced a Virtual Waiting Room to manage high traffic when multiple candidates try to access assessments simultaneously. During periods of high traffic, some candidates may see a temporary timer before they are granted access to the assessment.

It works by limiting the number of users allowed into the platform at a given time, helping prevent sudden load spikes and ensuring a more stable experience. 

Typing analytics for Subjective questions

We’ve introduced real-time typing analytics for Subjective questions to give visibility into a candidate’s writing effort and fluency. These metrics are for review only and do not impact the final score.

You can use metrics like active time, keystrokes, WPM, accuracy, corrections, and paste events to better assess effort, clarity, and behaviour during responses.