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The Mainichi
2 days ago
- The Mainichi
Tokyo police reveal tiny earphones used in organized cheating on English test
TOKYO -- Police investigating organized cheating on an English proficiency test in Japan revealed on July 22 tiny earphones and an audio relay device that a Chinese test taker possessed. Police are continuing their investigation, suspecting that these items were provided by a Chinese company that facilitates cheating on exams. The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD)'s International Crime Division also disclosed an instructional video on how to use the device. The earphones and audio device were provided by a Chinese woman who was voluntarily questioned by police after allegedly attempting to receive answers remotely from another person at a Tokyo test site for the Test of English for International Communication, known commonly as TOEIC, on June 7. The earphone is a 3-millimeter metal sphere that fits inside the ear and transmits sound via bone conduction. It is invisible from the outside and is apparently removed with a stick-shaped magnet. The audio relay device was embedded in a pendant decorated with ornaments. The instructional video was found on the woman's smartphone and is believed to have been sent in advance by the company. It explains how to insert the earphone, connect the relay device to a smartphone and other steps. On the same day, the MPD served a fresh arrest warrant to Wang Likun, 27, a Chinese graduate student at Kyoto University, for allegedly taking the test under another person's name at a test site in Tokyo's Nerima Ward on March 1. Wang is believed to have played a role in providing correct answers to cheaters, and this is his fourth arrest warrant. He is reportedly remaining silent about the allegations. The MPD also revealed an about 7-centimeter stick-shaped miniature microphone seized from Wang. The item was apparently hidden inside a face mask. At a March TOEIC test in Nerima Ward, 14 Chinese men and women in their 20s or younger registered with the same address in the capital's Nakano Ward as Wang, and are suspected of attempting to cheat. (Japanese original by Kengo Suga, Tokyo City News Department)
Japan Times
2 days ago
- Japan Times
Rice grain-sized earphone may have been used to cheat on TOEIC English test
A bone-conduction earphone the size of a grain of rice may have been used to cheat on the TOEIC English proficiency test in Japan, police sources said Tuesday. The earphone was confiscated from a suspected test cheater, along with a pendant-shaped relay device and a roughly 40-minute video explaining how to use the equipment, according to the sources. The suspected cheater was one of 10 Chinese test takers at the same test venue as Wang Likun, a 27-year-old graduate student at Kyoto University who has been arrested in the case. The earphone, which was several millimeters in size, was designed to be removed from the ear using a magnetic stick. The relay device was for connecting to a smartphone. The international crimes division of Tokyo's Metropolitan Police Department believes that the equipment was provided by a Chinese business offering cheating services. The video explained in Chinese-language audio and subtitles how to use the relay device, including linking it to smartphones via Bluetooth. In May, Wang was arrested at the test venue. He had a small microphone about 3 to 4 centimeters long hidden in his mask. Wang has been served another arrest warrant for allegedly impersonating another person to take a TOEIC test in Tokyo's Nerima Ward on March 1. Fourteen Chinese nationals applied for the same day's TOEIC test using the same address in Tokyo's Nakano Ward as Wang.
2 days ago
Rice Grain-Sized Earphone May Have Been Used to Cheat on Test
News from Japan Society Jul 22, 2025 16:49 (JST) Tokyo, July 22 (Jiji Press)--A bone-conduction earphone the size of a grain of rice may have been used to cheat on the TOEIC English proficiency test in Japan, police sources said Tuesday. The earphone was confiscated from a suspected test cheater, along with a pendant-shaped relay device and a roughly 40-minute video explaining how to use the equipment, according to the sources. The suspected cheater was one of 10 Chinese test takers at the same test venue as Wang Likun, a 27-year-old graduate student at Kyoto University who has been arrested in the case. The earphone, which was several millimeters in size, was designed to be removed from the ear using a magnetic stick. The relay device was for connecting to a smartphone. The international crimes division of Tokyo's Metropolitan Police Department believes that the equipment was provided by a Chinese business offering cheating services. [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.] Jiji Press
NHK
2 days ago
- NHK
Tokyo police suspect systematic plot behind TOEIC English test cheating
Police in Tokyo say they have found that English proficiency test examinees involved in suspected group cheating had been given miniature earphones and other devices prior to the test. They suspect that there may be other collaborators in Japan in addition to a Chinese national arrested in relation to cheating on the Test of English for International Communication, or TOEIC. Wang Likun, a 27-year-old graduate student of Kyoto University in western Japan, was served a fourth arrest warrant on Tuesday on suspicion of taking the TOEIC test under a false name at a venue in Tokyo's Nerima Ward last March. He has been served arrest warrants three times over TOEIC tests at other venues. The suspect has reportedly remained silent during questioning. At the test held in Nerima Ward last March, 12 Chinese nationals, all of whose addresses were registered as the same apartment in Nakano Ward, took the test together. The police believe Wang tried to give answers to other examinees suspected to be involved in the scheme through a small microphone hidden under a face mask he was wearing and smart glasses. They say they have learned that the examinees in question had been given earphones measuring 3 millimeters across, a pendant-type repeater and a video guide in advance. The police are investigating what appears to be a systematic cheating scheme.
Japan Times
08-07-2025
- Japan Times
Over 800 people found to be involved in TOEIC cheating scheme
At least 803 people were involved in cheating schemes on the Test of English for International Communication known as TOEIC over the past two years, the organization that runs the exam announced on Monday. Wang Likun, a 27-year-old Chinese graduate student from Kyoto University, was arrested last month for taking the TOEIC exam while posing as someone else, according to Jiji reports. He was also arrested in May for entering a testing center under a false identity. He is thought to have posed as a different person to take the exam and achieve a high score for whoever had commissioned him to take the test on their behalf. He also attempted to use a small microphone under a mask to tell other test-takers in the same venue the right answers. Given the incident, the organization that administers the exams, the Institute for International Business Communications, conducted an investigation on the tests that were taken between May 2023 and June of this year. So far, the organization found there were 803 test-takers who had submitted home addresses that were the same as or similar to Wang's, which would enable them to take the test at the same venue as him. For those who were identified, their test scores have been nullified and their accounts for the exam have been suspended. The organization is continuing to look into whether there are other cases where addresses that are similar to each other have been used when applying for the exam. There are also suspicions that Wang is part of a bigger cheating scheme involving more people. The exam organization had also implemented new measures since last month to prevent such cheating from occurring, such as test proctors ensuring all examinee's electronic devices are turned off as well as emphasizing the rules of the test and the severe consequences of cheating, such as notifying police. TOEIC is a widely taken English exam in Japan often required when applying for certain jobs or schools, as well as for some career advancements. The test is thought to be valuable for examining the test-takers' abilities to understand English in the business world, as well as in regular conversations. The results are evaluated on a numerical scale where 990 is a perfect score.
