Action taken against people involved in suspected leak of exam questions

BEIJING - Action has begun against those implicated in the suspected leak of questions used in civil servant recruitment exams, authorities said Friday.

The exams were held in 26 provincial regions last Saturday. That evening, someone who sat the exam in eastern Jiangxi Province posted pictures of the exam papers on China's version of Twitter, Weibo.

Exam questions used in 24 of these regions came from the same question database, the examination and recruitment department of the State Administration of Civil Service (SACS) said.

Investigations have been launched.

Jiangxi police found evidence implicating an educational and training agency in profiteering from cheating.

Those involved have been put under "coercive measures," the SACS said, without specifying the exact measures, which may include summons by force, bail, residential surveillance, detention and arrest.

Investigators have not yet found any evidence of questions being leaked before the exam started.

SACS vowed zero tolerance for cheating and any action that compromises the fairness of recruitment exams, saying that organizations and individuals involved in organized cheating will be held to account.