Six candidates arrested for ‘digital cheating’ in constable exam in Ranchi

Six candidates, including three from Bihar, were arrested for allegedly using a digital method to cheat in the SSC GD Constable Examination held at a computer centre in Ranchi, a police official said on Sunday. Ranchi City SP Paras Rana said police received information that candidates were being assisted through remote access systems.

Six candidates, including three from Bihar, were arrested for allegedly using a ''digital'' method to cheat in the SSC GD Constable Examination held at a computer centre in Ranchi, a police official said on Sunday. The centre's owner and staff are absconding after the incident, police said. The incident took place at an examination centre within Pandra police station limits on Saturday. Ranchi City SP Paras Rana said police received information that candidates were being assisted through remote access systems. ''We received information that there are certain systems through which candidates' questions are being solved remotely via remote access. There was absolutely no physical movement from the candidates, and the cursor was moving automatically, and the questions were being solved,'' Rana told reporters. He said the examination centre observer alerted police, following which action was taken. ''The centre observer informed police regarding the development,'' he said. ''We seized the suspected systems and detained the candidates (between 18 and 27 years of age) for interrogation,'' Rana said. He added that they had information about the same pattern of cheating in Dehradun and other cities. ''We consulted multiple agencies, including the Criminal Investment Department (cyber), and concluded that the centre owner and superintendent were involved in the crime. They were found absconding after the incident,'' he said. Six computers, two DVRs of CCTV, two firewalls, two routers, one CPU of master computer, two C-DAC boxes, six admit cards, five mobile phones and one tablet were seized, he said. Rana added that the suspected computers were connected to a master computer where the questions were being solved. Among the six candidates, three belong to different places in Bihar, three others hail from Koderma, Hazaribag and Gumla in Jharkhand.