Han Won-seok faces police probe, possible criminal complaint from exam administrator
The top scorer in this year's tax accountant qualification exam in South Korea, who has admitted to cheating, revealed that he used a combination of a miniature camera, a generative AI model and a smartphone to obtain answers during the test.
Han Won-seok, 34, revealed the cheating method in a video posted on the YouTube channel of his attorney, Lee Don-ho, in which he acknowledged his misconduct and apologized for his actions.
According to Han, he photographed exam questions using a miniature camera, sent the images to an AI tool to obtain answers and checked the results on his smartphone during both rounds of the tax accountant exam, held in April and July. He declined to provide further details, citing concerns that others might imitate the method.
He also admitted to using the same method to cheat in the first round of the certified public accountant exam in March, which he failed.
"I submitted a written confession to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency detailing everything I did, and I will hand over all remaining materials and devices to investigators as evidence in their original condition," Han said in the video.
"I sincerely apologize for the harm my actions have caused to so many people."
According to the Human Resources Development Service of Korea, which administers national qualification exams, two proctors were assigned to the room where Han took the tax accountant exams. He was seated in the center of the second row for the first test and in the center of the front row for the second.
Han scored 397.5 out of 400 in the first round in April, answering 159 of 160 multiple-choice questions correctly. He earned perfect scores in three of the four subjects, including introductory tax law, in which test-takers averaged just 30.18 points.
His unusually high scores had raised suspicions among fellow candidates, but Han previously denied cheating allegations.
Police have received Han's written confession and launched an investigation into the allegations. The Human Resources Development Service of Korea, which administers the tax accountant qualification exam, is considering filing a criminal complaint against him, according to news reports.
The Ministry of Economy and Finance is also seeking to suspend the validity of Han's qualification certificate through the Tax Accountant Qualification Deliberation Committee under the National Tax Service.
Under the Certified Tax Accountant Act, candidates found to have cheated have their exam results invalidated and are barred from taking the tax accountant qualification exam for five years from the date of the disciplinary action.
cjh@heraldcorp.com
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