South Korea probes top exam scorer after AI cheating

South Korean police yesterday said they had launched an investigation after the top scorer in a national tax accountant exam admitted to using artificial intelligence (AI) to cheat.

The candidate, who ranked first in both rounds of the qualification exam in April and July, confessed through his lawyer that he used AI to obtain answers during the tests.

His score of 397.5 out of 400 points in the first round, with only one wrong answer out of 160 questions, had sparked accusations that he cheated using smart glasses, which he initially denied.

An optometrist holds a pair of smart glasses at an eyewear store in Seoul on Oct. 30.

Photo: AFP

“We received a written confession through the test taker’s lawyer this morning regarding cheating on the tax accountant exam,” the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said, adding the case had been assigned to investigators.

In a video posted on his lawyer’s YouTube channel, the candidate said he “deeply regretted” what he had done.

“I used a miniature camera to photograph the exam questions and sent them to AI, then checked the answers on my smartphone,” he said.

He had struggled financially after leaving his job to start a business, he said.

“I wanted to make money, and I hated seeing myself disappointing my parents after quitting a good job,” he said.

His lawyer said further details would not be disclosed over concerns other cheaters could copy the method.

The examination is administered by the Human Resources Development Service of Korea (HRDK), which said two supervisors were present when the candidate sat the test.

HRDK president Lee Byung-hoon apologized for the incident and said the agency would file a criminal complaint against the test-taker for obstruction of business.

With the highly competitive annual college entrance test, known as the “Suneung,” due to take place on Thursday, the presidential office said it was treating the issue seriously.

At a meeting held yesterday, officials decided to comprehensively investigate all suspected cases of cheating involving AI across national qualification examinations, the office said.

Authorities have stepped up efforts against cheating involving smart glasses.

An “AI inspector” caught a test taker wearing smart glasses during a gas engineer certification exam last month, the HRDK said yesterday.

The government last month announced plans to file criminal complaints against students caught using such devices in the national university entrance exam.