Line #30 Main/SchoolGradeHacking


1	[[quoteright:350:[[Film/WarGames https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/grades_hacking_2.png]]]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:"I don't think I deserved an F, do you?"]]
3
4	->''"Breaking into the school system was easy with my computer. So what if I gave myself a better mark?! I wanted to be first! So I cheated, big deal!"''
5	-->-- '''Bentley''', ''WesternAnimation/TheRaccoons'', "Trouble Shooter!"
6
7	So you are a young TechnoWizard who happens to underperform at school. So how do you [[GottaPassTheClass pass the class]]? Luckily, the school's database [[EverythingIsOnline is online]], allowing you to hack into the system and improve your grades effortlessly with the click of a button.
8
9	If the student isn't equipped to hack the computer themself, they may enlist a brilliant friend to help them out. The coup may also be done to either up- or downgrade someone else's scores or to tamper with other sensitive information besides grades.
10
11	An AcceptableBreakFromReality nowadays since this has become harder to pull off in real life than fiction wants us to believe. So much so that it'd easily be a lot more work hacking in to do this than it would be to just sit down, study hard, and raise your grades the old-fashioned way (or find other ways to cheat). Needless to say: DontTryThisAtHome; this is considered tampering with school property and people have gotten straight-up arrested for grade hacking (at the very least, you could get suspended or expelled).
12
13	Compare LaboriousLaziness. Often overlaps with BrilliantButLazy. Likely to be employed in a GottaPassTheClass plot.
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15	Administrivia/NoRealLifeExamplesPlease
16	----
17	!!Example:
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19	[[foldercontrol]]
20
21	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
22	* In ''Manga/{{Kodocha}}'', the former delinquent Akito changes his best friend Sana's math grade in the Season 1 finale so they can start middle school together in Season 2. This proves how much he loves her, and how much delinquency he still had left over.
23	* A slight variant occurs in the second episode of ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing''. Heero, who is using Relena's school as a cover, hacks into a school computer both to set up torpedoes to destroy his Gundam and clear his financial situation with the school, though a card is used with the latter.
24	* ''Manga/SuccubusAndHitman'': Shouya offers to protect PlayfulHacker Kururi from the {{Yakuza}} she stole money from in exchange for her help hunting his targets. To test her skills, he orders her to hack into his high school and enroll herself as a NewTransferStudent.
25	[[/folder]]
26
27	[[folder:Fan Works]]
28	* ''Fanfic/WithPearlAndRubyGlowing'': After years of bullying and assault, Dr. Flug hacks into his high school database and takes his bullies' grades down several levels.
29	[[/folder]]
30
31	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
32	* ''Film/AliensInTheAttic'' has Tom hack the school computer network to change his grades. As his father points out, if he's smart enough to hack the system, he's smart enough to get the good grades in the first place. This is justified as Tom was deliberately "dumbing down" to try and fit in with the other kids.
33	* In ''Film/FerrisBuellersDayOff'', Ferris hacks into the school's system from his computer to change the number of absences he's had. Possibly an ActorAllusion, since Creator/MatthewBroderick also pretty much did the same thing in ''Film/WarGames''. Ferris, however, isn't quite so excited about it:
34	-->'''Ferris:''' "I asked for a car, I got a computer. How's ''that'' for being born under a bad sign?"
35	* ''Film/KickAss2'', Mindy hacks the school to give herself perfect attendance so she could cut class and train as Hit Girl every day. It finally backfires when she's not there to receive her Perfect Attendance Award and her father is called.
36	* ''Film/{{Sneakers}}'': This is how Carl Arborgast became the youngest member of Martin Bishop's team. While testing security at a school, they caught him hacking into the system in an attempt to change his grade.
37	* The TropeCodifier is the 1983 movie ''Film/WarGames'' where David remotely dials into the school computer via modem to change his Biology grade from F to C so he can skip summer school, and he also changes his classmate Jennifer's grade from F to A.
38	* ''Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague'': In the flashback of how Victor Stone became Cyborg, the Dean of Gotham City University discusses with Victor's mother Ellinore how he hacked into the school database and changed his classmate Sarah's grades. Ellinore tries to justify her son's actions by saying that Sarah and her family had lost their house and her grades were affected because of it.
39	[[/folder]]
40
41	[[folder:Literature]]
42	* In the Alex Flinn novel ''Literature/BreakingPoint2002'', Charlie convinces Paul to break into the school and hack into the student-record database to change his biology grade from a "D" to a "B".
43	* In ''Literature/HalfwayAcrossTheGalaxyAndTurnLeft'', there's a recurring thread of the protagonist struggling to live up to the expectations placed on her because of her exceptional exam results. Near the end of the novel, her father -- who's currently in hiding from the authorities after hacking the lottery for the 27th time -- admits to her that he hacked her exam results because he wanted her to do well and that her actual results weren't as high.
44	* In ''Literature/LookingForAlaska'', the main characters decrease their peers' grades to get back at them for nearly killing Miles, urinating in Chip's shoes, and soaking Alaska's bedroom library.
45	* In ''Literature/SweetValleyHigh'''s #14, ''Deceptions'', Jessica Wakefield convinces Randy Walker to change her failing grade so she can remain in the cheerleading squad. Randy ends up deciding to confess to the principal and Elizabeth, who finds out by accident, forces Jessica to go to the principal's office.
46	* In ''Literature/{{Haze}}'', Guzzle persuades Seb to hack into the school computer to change all his Fs to Cs so his mum won't find out how many classes he failed.
47	[[/folder]]
48
49	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
50	* ''Series/ICarly'' episode "[[Recap/ICarlyS01Ep12IPromiseNotToTell iPromise Not to Tell]]" features a two instances of this going both ways.
51	** The episode is kickstarted when Carly gets a B on her history report that she worked so hard on -- solely because it was printed on three-hole paper, which the teacher hates -- leading to Sam tampering with the school's computer and changing the grade to an A+, as well as futzing with her and Freddie's grades for good measure. In this case, Sam isn't quite "hacking", but rather was [[{{Delinquent}} (once again)]] brought into the principal's office with the administrative computer, taking the opportunity the moment she was left unattended.
52	** Later, when Carly and Freddie spend the rest of the episode riddled with guilt, they end up attempting to properly hack into the system through the school's T5 Line [[InvertedTrope in order to change the grades back]]. Unlike the above example, this ''is'' hacking... [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome which immediately gets the two in trouble]] as the school security manage to detect a breach and track it to Freddie's computer, foiling their plans.
53	* In the ''Series/{{Superstore}}'' episode "[[Recap/SuperstoreS3E17 District Manager]]", Mateo goes into his boss's computer and changes his checkout stat (UPM score) to be phenomenally high.
54	* In ''Series/StrangerThings'' season 4 opener "[[Recap/StrangerThingsS4E1ChapterOneTheHellfireClub The Hellfire Club]]", Dustin's TeenGenius girlfriend Suzie does him a favor and hacks into the Hawkins Highschool system to change Dustin's Latin score from a D to an A.
55	* In ''Series/TheOrville'' episode "[[Recap/TheOrvilleS2E1Jaloja Ja'loja]]", it's revealed that James hacked the school database to improve his grades. His parents [[MamaDidntRaiseNoCriminal refuse to believe]] he could do such a thing.
56	* Discussed in ''Series/TheGoldbergs'' episode "[[Recap/TheGoldbergsS2E4ShallWePlayAGame Shall We Play a Game]]" where Adam claims to be able to hack into the school database to change Barry's grades just like in ''Film/WarGames''. Since it's actually next to impossible to do that in the 1980s, he does the next best thing and "hacks" Barry's brain by tricking him into studying instead.
57	* In ''Series/BeverlyHills90210'' episode "Destiny Rides Again", Steve gets bad news regarding his low SAT score. He decides to take the risk and get Herbert to help him hack into the school computer to change his grades. Eventually he gets caught and would have gotten expelled if his mother didn't pull a ScrewTheRulesImFamous.
58	* In the ItsAWonderfulPlot episode of the ''Literature/SweetValleyHigh'' TV series, Todd changed from the football team captain to a computer nerd. Toward the end of the episode, he is arrested for breaking into the school records and changing the grades for the sake of Enid, the timeline's AlphaBitch.
59	* In the ''Series/{{CSINY}}'' episode "[[Recap/CSINYS07E17 Do or Die]]", a nerdy student hacks the school's computer system to obtain copies of expected tests to create an answer key for another student (a popular girl he's tutoring) so she can keep her reputation as the smartest girl in school as well as get accepted to the college of her choice.
60	* ''Series/{{Suits}}'': A variation; a hacker has to not only change grades but create an entire fake Harvard transcript for Mike, who never actually attended.
61	[[/folder]]
62
63	[[folder:Radio]]
64	* One episode of ''Radio/AdventuresInOdyssey'' has Eugene discover evidence of a somebody changing the grades a school he is working at. He discovers that a student he befriended is the culprit, who did it on behalf of another member of the staff who was taking money in exchange for changing grades. Eugene changes the grades back but gets caught and decides to take the blame, but the student confesses the truth.
65	[[/folder]]
66
67	[[folder:Video Games]]
68	* Discussed in ''VideoGame/MaxBlasterAndDorisDeLightningAgainstTheParrotCreaturesOfVenus''. When [[HopelessWithTech Max]] can't figure out how to work a computer, the more technically-inclined Doris takes over. She says that she was at the top of her electronics class for two years, and ''didn't'' even have to hack in and change her teacher's files.
69	* Hacking the International Academic Database is an early game mission in ''VideoGame/{{Uplink}}''.
70	* ''VideoGame/TheGameDevTree'': One of the Good Will upgrades is "Hack into college databases", which allows you to "Manipulate your GPA to multiply enrollment gain based on your refactors".
71	* The objective of the ''VideoGame/SkoolDaze'' FanSequel ''Klass of '99'' is to hack into the school's computer and delete your disastrous end-of-term report.
72	* ''VideoGame/TheSims2'': Young adult sims who become members of the university's secret society can hack their grades. Naturally, this carries a risk of getting caught by the police and fined (which can be mitigated somewhat by having a high logic skill).
73	* ''VideoGame/TronTwoPointOh'' implies this (among other shenanigans). One of several incidents of adolescent rebellion on Jet Bradley's part was hacking into the school's mainframe, something that did ''not'' impress the more rule-abiding Alan.
74	* ''VideoGame/{{Troublemaker}}'' has an example where the good guys does it, in a night infiltration mission where you infiltrate the principal's office to change the grades of the AbsurdlyPowerfulStudentCouncil Chairman and expose his past crimes, which involves [[spoiler:sexually violating your girlfriend]].
75	* In ''Videogame/FalloutNewVegas'', a sidequest involves helping a squad dubbed "The Misfits" improve, with one possible solution being to simply hack the camp's computer to make it seem like they're doing better than they are. However this results in them being ill-prepared for actual combat, with their ending stating that the ones who aren't killed in battle end up getting caught and executed for desertion.
76	[[/folder]]
77
78	[[folder:Visual Novels]]
79	* ''[[VisualNovel/TheFreshman The Junior]]'': One of the students had his grades hacked in the form of a deadly prank. The student was almost expelled and the culprit was unmasked.
80	[[/folder]]
81
82	[[folder:Webcomics]]
83	* Parodied in the ''WebComic/{{xkcd}}'' strip [[https://xkcd.com/2385/ Final Exam]]. The students in a cybersecurity class are told that they have all failed and their grades will be stored on the server within the students' reach and only be submitted the next day. WhatCouldPossiblyGoWrong However, to keep the hacking in check, the game theory course's grade is based on how close the grade matches 80% of the average score.
84	* In ''Webcomic/DumbingOfAge'', Amber [[https://www.dumbingofage.com/2018/comic/book-8/04-of-mike-and-men/fraud-2/ hacked Walky's grades]] to improve his marks in math and become an A student again.
85	[[/folder]]
86
87	[[folder:Web Originals]]
88	* ''WebVideo/DharMann'' In one [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dp8b5KEOxHs one]] episode a kid makes all their grades fours. They are chosen as an alternate and they join becuase [[TemptingFate "alternates never get used"]] and they get a bunch of questions wrong. They get caught and LaserGuidedKarma ensues
89	[[/folder]]
90
91	[[folder:Western Animation]]
92	* ''WesternAnimation/TheRaccoons'': In the episode "[[Recap/TheRaccoonsS3E10TroubleShooter Trouble Shooter!]]", Bentley used his laptop to hack into his school's database and give himself better math grades, which led to him running away from home before his parents found out.
93	* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': In the episode "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS5E3HomerGoesToCollege Homer Goes to College]]", Mr. Burns sends Homer to Springfield University so Homer can earn his Master's degree and keep his job at the Nuclear Power Plant. Several nerds help Homer study for his test, but unfortunately, Homer still gets an F, so the nerds hack into the college's computer to change his grade. When Homer's family finds out, Lisa points out that Homer only passed the test by cheating, which he always taught her was wrong. Marge then makes Homer go back to college so he can pass the test for real and set a good example for his family.
94	* In ''WesternAnimation/TheClevelandShow'' episode "[[Recap/TheClevelandShowS2E5LittleManOnCampus Little Big Man on Campus]]", Cleveland brings in Holt as a ringer to help win the state championship, and this inspires Cleveland Jr. to cheat on his final wood shop class assignment to pass the class. When Cleveland finds out about this, he pulls Holt off the team, costing the school the championship, and Cleveland Jr. gets an "F" in woodshop. At the very end, Holt still participates in the high school's rendition of ''Theatre/{{Rent}}'', and the closing text states that Donna used her status as the school's secretary to change Cleveland Jr.'s grade to a "B" and that "[[IgnoredAesop nobody learned anything.]]"
95	* In the ''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom'' episode "[[Recap/DannyPhantomS1E6WhatYouWant What You Want]]", Danny catches Tucker hacking into the school's computer network to change his grades when confronting him about his newly-acquired ghost powers. This is used as an example of how Tucker was abusing his powers, and how his constant use of them was corrupting his morality.
96	* Occurs in the second episode of ''WesternAnimation/XMenEvolution'', "X-Impulse", featuring the debut of recurring characters Kitty Pryde and Lance Alvers. The latter teaches the former on how to use her phasing powers (after she discovered she has mutant abilities for the first time) to help him infiltrate the principal's office, which she did, but when Kitty realize he's going to hack into the school's computers and alter their grades she quickly have a change of heart. It quickly leads to Lance using his powers to bring down part of the school in an attempt to stop Kitty from leaving.
97	[[/folder]]

Context Main / SchoolGradeHacking