Caught Red-Handed: Chinese Nationals Busted for Cheating on Korean Language Test!

Several Chinese nationals have been caught attempting to take the Test of Proficiency in Korean (TOPIK) on behalf of others using counterfeit foreign resident registration cards.

According to police reports on Tuesday, a Chinese woman in her 30s was apprehended while taking the TOPIK exam at Soongsil University in Seoul on July 13. She presented a forged residence card to the test supervisor and was immediately arrested.

Law enforcement officials stated that her smartphone contained evidence of arrangements made through a broker to take the test as a proxy.

TOPIK is a standardized test that evaluates the Korean language proficiency of overseas Koreans and non-native foreign nationals. Administered by the National Institute for International Education under the South Korean Ministry of Education, it is widely used for university admissions, job applications, and visa procedures in South Korea.

Similar incidents were reported on the same day at Hansung University and Inje University, where other Chinese nationals were caught attempting to take the test using fake identification documents.

Given that all the forged IDs were issued on the same date by the same regional immigration office, authorities are now investigating the possibility of an organized proxy testing operation.