Five Cases of Cheating with AI Smart Glasses Detected in National Technical Qualification Exams

Five cases of a new form of cheating involving smart glasses equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) have been detected this year at national technical qualification exam sites, including exams for the Information Processing Engineer certification.

According to materials submitted by the Human Resources Development Service of Korea to Assemblyman Kim Wisang of the People Power Party, a member of the National Assembly’s Climate, Energy, Environment and Labor Committee, the agency has detected a total of 40 cases of cheating in national qualification exams it administers so far this year.

By type, the most common method was the traditional use of notes, with 30 cases, followed by five cases involving smart glasses, four involving smartphone use, and one involving peeking at another candidate’s answers.

Google said on the 20th (local time) that it would work with Samsung Electronics to develop smart glasses at its annual developer conference in Mountain View, California. The photo shows Google's smart glasses. Yonhap News.

Cheating involving smart glasses was first detected in May at a Fire Protection System Engineer exam. At the time, an exam proctor noticed light coming from inside the lenses of a candidate’s glasses as the candidate behaved suspiciously, looking around and repeatedly lowering their head unnaturally.

At an Information Processing Engineer exam held the same month, a proctor spotted a miniature camera lens and indicator light attached to a candidate’s glasses frame. At an Industrial Engineer Electricity exam, a blue display appeared on the lens just as a candidate pressed a control button on the side of their glasses frame.

Then, at a Gas Craftsman exam on June 29, electronic sounds suddenly came from a pair of smart glasses, exposing the cheating. Two candidates were caught at the same time that day. Of the five cases, four involved smart glasses made by China’s Rokid, while one involved a product made by U.S.-based Meta.

The Human Resources Development Service of Korea has formally requested investigations by law enforcement authorities into all five cases involving smart glasses to determine whether copyright law was violated, including through the leaking of exam questions.

The agency is also distributing training materials to help on-site proctors identify smart glasses with the naked eye. In consultation with the Ministry of Employment and Labor, it is working to amend regulations to explicitly include the possession or use of wearable electronic devices, such as smart glasses, in the criteria for cheating.

Assemblyman Kim said, "There are inevitably limits to catching cheating involving advanced AI technology if we rely solely on proctors’ visual inspections. We need to quickly establish a pre-exam screening system that can work effectively at exam sites, such as conducting comprehensive checks of candidates’ eyewear before they enter the exam room or introducing specialized detection equipment."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.