Imposter Taking SAT Test is Caught

The Long Island SAT cheating scandal was reviewed by the television program, 60 Minutes (see link here). The teenage perpetrator charged morally and cognitively challenged students $2500 per test and took tests for others twenty times. He concluded by saying it was easy to take the test for others and could do so easily today.

The College Board, the organization that administers and grades the SAT test requires that students bring picture identification to the test (see link). So the Long Island cheater must have counted on a perfunctory checking of identification. Since the cheater even took a test for his girlfriend, it seems in this case that the IDs weren't checked at all. I asked my own children about their experience taking the test, and they said that their IDs were checked. Perhaps the Long Island cheater wore disguises.

I phoned and sent an email to the College Board, and they replied that they are conducting an internal investigation.

Postscript, July 27, 2012: The College Board found that the Long Island cheater helped girls with gender-neutral names. This should not happen any more. Test takers nation-wide will be required to send in picture ID in advance, and the picture "will be printed on their admission tickets and the roster at the test center." The scores will also be automatically sent to the students' high schools. Failing students achieving top SAT scores will be investigated. I believe that the College Board has improved the "security of the process." Students will not get away with impersonating each other. Other types of cheating such as copying may still occur, though I believe incidents are rare. See the link to the story here.