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A successful person who passed this year's tax accountant exam with an exceptional score admitted to cheating using artificial intelligence (AI) and turned himself in to the police.
Mr. A, who passed the 63rd tax accountant exam at the top of his class, appeared on the YouTube channel 'Lawyer Lee Don-ho' on the 15th and said, "I cheated by using electronic devices and generative AI in the first and second tax accountant exams."
He said, "I committed cheating by taking pictures of test questions with an ultra-small camera, transmitting them to AI, and then checking the answers with my smartphone," adding that he cheated in the same way not only on the tax accountant exam but also on the first round of the certified public accountant exam.
Mr. A apologized, saying, “The fact that I passed at the top of my class was not the result of legitimate effort,” and added, “I sincerely apologize once again to the test takers who have diligently prepared for the test for a long time and to those who legitimately passed the test.”
In the video, Mr. A, wearing a black mask and appearing with a lawyer, explained why he committed the misconduct and how he committed it.
Mr. A said that he was unable to save much money while working, and quit his job to become self-employed, but the situation was not good, such as operating costs rising significantly due to the war in Russia. He explained the reason for committing fraud by saying, "I wanted to make money, and I hated myself for quitting a good job and disappointing my parents."
He added, "As a starting student in my early to mid-30s, I felt very at a loss, and the fear of how long it would take to take the test made me very nervous. I wanted to make my parents proud once again by passing the test even if I had to cheat."
Mr. A got only one question wrong out of 160 questions in the first test and received 397.5 points out of 400 points. When the score became known, suspicions of cheating were raised, saying the test score was unusually high.
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He said, "I will tell the investigative agency the process of planning and executing the cheating," and "I will faithfully cooperate with the necessary verification and prevention efforts to prevent cheating from occurring in all future exams."
However, the lawyer did not disclose the specific method in the video because there were concerns that similar misconduct could occur if all the details were disclosed, but said, "I will explain the method used as is" to the investigative agency and the test management organization.
He said that although some of the devices used were damaged, he plans to submit the remaining equipment and evidence to the investigative agency.
On the morning of the 15th, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's investigation department received Mr. A's confession regarding cheating on the tax accountant exam through his lawyer, immediately assigned the case to the metropolitan investigation team, and explained that they plan to conduct a prompt and strict investigation according to procedures.
