India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday disclosed that it has detained a Russian nationwide for allegedly hacking right into a software program platform used to conduct engineering entrance assessments within the nation in 2021.
“The mentioned accused was detained by the Bureau of Immigration at Indira Gandhi Worldwide Airport, Delhi whereas arriving in India from Almaty, Kazakhstan,” the first investigating company mentioned in a press launch.
The title of the person was not disclosed by the company, however Indian information stories recognized the particular person as Mikhail Shargin.
The CBI additional mentioned that Shargin’s function was uncovered as a part of its investigation into alleged irregularities dedicated within the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE-Principal) carried out final yr. JEE is a standardized take a look at used for admissions to engineering schools in India.
The September 2021 incident, per the company, concerned breaking into iLeon software program, the platform on which the examination was held, with the purpose of granting distant entry to a selected set of co-conspirators, who then solved the questions on the scholars’ behalf.
Shargin’s associates have been accused of “manipulating the net examination of JEE (Mains) and facilitating aspiring college students to get admission in high NITs in consideration of big quantity by fixing the query paper of the applicant by means of distant entry from a selected examination middle in Sonepat (Haryana),” the CBI famous.
The dishonest scheme additionally integrated a monetary factor in that the operators charged roughly 12-15 lakh Rupees ($14,700-$18,400) from every candidate as soon as the aspirants secured their admissions.
The CBI said it carried out searches at 19 locations final yr throughout the cities of Delhi, Pune, Jamshedpur, Indore, and Bangalore, resulting in the seizure of 25 laptops, seven PCs, together with different incriminating proof.
