Quiet but Big Worries about the Higher Education Act

A colleague from another state called me today to ask my opinion of the Higher Education Act (2008) reauthorized in August. Buried in this mongo, 1200-page bill (full text) is a line that says that accreditors must require institutions to ensure that any student enrolled in a distance course is truly the one doing the work. Specifically it states: "the agency or association requires an institution that offers distance education or correspondence education to have processes through which the institution establishes that the student who registers in a distance education or correspondence education course or program is the same student who participates in and completes the program and receives the academic credit" So far, there are some questions and speculation but not a lot of answers. What exactly does this mean? Some, particularly companies who sell identification software (such as biometric or cameras) are interpreting it to mean that we must prove the identity of a student taking an online exam. But does this also apply to homework, discussion boards, papers, etc.? How can we prove that an online student who writes a term paper is truly that student unless they are actually proctored while writing the paper? This would be an impossible standard that could mean the demise of all online learning? Traditional courses are not held to such a standard, nor should they be. If it is only referring to proctored examinations, I can only imagine how instructors and institutions may respond. Yes, some will invest (or have their students invest) in online proctoring devices or face-to-face proctors. But I think that others would reduce or eliminate testing all together, relying only on discussion boards, papers, projects, etc. I am worried about this, and am anxious to hear how other institutions are responding, and what accreditors are interpreting this to mean.