Foretelling fraud
It recently came to light that someone was helped during a theory exam via a camera and a microphone. The CBR now has indications that this is occurring on a larger scale and is sounding the alarm.
The Central Office for the Issuance of Driving Skills Certificates (CBR) has seen more and more so-called prediction fraud in theory exams for the driving license in the past six months. People take their exams with a hidden camera that films the questions, while someone remotely relays the answers via a small microphone.
The CBR is reticent about exact figures. “But in the past three to four weeks, four people have been caught in the act of doing this,” Ed Eering said after reports from NOS and Algemeen Dagblad. He is responsible for the theory exams. Normally this type of fraud occurs a few times a year “We now have indications that it is happening on a large scale. People would pay €2,000 to €2,500 to pass their exam in this way. That is big money, while taking an exam only costs €41,” said Eering.
If the CBR catches a candidate committing this type of fraud, the police will be called. He takes the person into custody, after which the police and the Public Prosecution Service proceed to criminal prosecution. “But we actually want the people behind this to be dealt with as well. Exam candidates, without dismissing them as victims, are somehow tempted to pay a lot of money for this. There must be an overarching approach that also includes the organizers of fall under the fraud,” said Eering.
The director of the CBR, Alexander Pechtold, calls the fraud against the NOS ‘organized crime’. “It can’t be compared to cheating in school. It’s all very advanced.” Pechtold would like to see exam fraud specifically punishable. If someone is caught cheating, they may not take a new theory exam for a number of months. “We can’t just prevent someone from taking the exam,” says Eering. However, a meeting with the CBR precedes the exam and the caught fraudster is under stricter supervision during the exam.
At the CBR they are familiar with exam fraud, from fake IDs to lookalikes of candidates taking the exam. Phones and watches are prohibited and must be kept in a locker during the exam. “There is even special equipment that checks whether the phones are in the locker and not secretly in the inside pocket,” says Eering.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl