While preparing for the tax accountant exam, I stole the official English test paper and wrote the answers using AI... Court: 'The guilt of being let down by competitors is bad'

I committed a crime while preparing for the tax accountant exam... Court: “The guilt of feeling let down by competitors is bad”

(Busan = Yonhap News) Reporter Cha Geun-ho = A test taker who stole an official English test paper, figured out the answers using artificial intelligence (AI), and wrote them on his palm while taking the test was sentenced to a suspended prison sentence.

Judge Sei Kim of the 6th Criminal Division of the Western Branch of the Busan District Court announced on the 23rd that Mr. A, who was indicted on charges of theft and obstruction of business, was sentenced to six months in prison and one year of probation and ordered him to perform 80 hours of community service.

Mr. A was brought to trial on charges of stealing the official English test preliminary exam paper from a middle school in Sasang-gu, Busan on March 22 and April 5, and then taking the test by writing down the answers confirmed by AI.

Mr. A, who was preparing for the tax accountant exam, planned this crime after failing to score 65 or higher, the official English test score.

At 1:38 p.m. on the day of the test, Mr. A entered the classroom while the head of the test center was away to check whether a proctor had been assigned, opened the envelope containing the preliminary test papers, and took the test papers.

For his first crime, he went to a nearby gas station, took a picture of the test paper with his cell phone, and entered it into Google's AI service, Gemini.

Then, I wrote the answers suggested by AI with a ballpoint pen on my right palm and took the test at 3 PM on the same day.

About two weeks later, he stole the preliminary exam paper from the same testing center, went to a nearby convenience store, and took the test using the same method, writing down the answers.

Judge Kim said, “The crime was repeated twice and the method was bold,” adding, “The nature of the crime is very bad in that it can damage trust in the fairness of the test, which focuses on equal opportunity, and cause a sense of disappointment to good-intentioned competitors.”

Mr. A criminally deposited 100,000 won each for the victims whose test papers were stolen, but the victims refused to receive it, so it was not considered as a favorable sentencing circumstance at trial.