Korea plans to extend smart-glasses exam bans from one year to three

South Korea's Ministry of Education announced on Oct. 29 that it will push to extend the exam suspension for students who cheat with smart glasses on the national college entrance exam, known as the CSAT, from one year to a maximum of three years. The ministry published a press reference release titled "CSAT smart-glasses cheating response plan" the same day. The three-year period is still a plan and is not in force.

The longer suspension needs a change to the Higher Education Act. According to The Chosun Daily, "since this requires legal amendments, the revised period will apply from next year's CSAT." No source we read says when the National Assembly would vote on it.

What the plan covers

The release is a government document, but its body sits in an attached .hwpx file that we did not open. The details below come from Korean outlets quoting the ministry, so we attribute them.

Under the current rule, the Seoul Economic Daily reports, "students caught wearing or using smart glasses currently have their exam invalidated and lose eligibility to sit the test the following year." The outlet adds that "even bringing smart glasses into a test site or simply carrying them without using them results in invalidation of the exam." Students who refuse a proctor's request to inspect their glasses can receive the same penalty after a review.

The ministry also plans criminal action. The Chosun Daily says it "will file complaints and request investigations from the police to pursue criminal charges, including obstruction of official duties by fraudulent means and business interference." The ministry points to a 2005 case in which a student in an organized scheme to swap answers by mobile phone was sentenced to eight months in prison, suspended for two years, per the Seoul Economic Daily.

Who enforces it

Enforcement sits with the Ministry of Education, provincial education offices and proctors at the test sites. SBS reports that starting with this year's CSAT, dedicated staff will check for smart glasses at the test centers: "a total of 1,312 dedicated personnel will be deployed to each center." If they cannot decide, The Chosun Daily says an emergency system linking the situation rooms of provincial education offices and the ministry will be activated.

SBS also reports the ministry will review whether radio-wave detectors are feasible and consider distributing them to test centers from next year. No source says they will be bought.

The stricter approach is meant to reach university-specific exams too, starting this year. The Chosun Daily says universities can apply the sanctions immediately through their own regulations, while the CSAT change needs the law. The ministry has recommended it, and no university decision is in our sources.

What it means for people with smart glasses

For anyone sitting the CSAT or a university exam in Korea, the practical line is the one already in force: smart glasses do not go into the test site, whether you wear them or carry them. SBS reports that education authorities listed smart glasses as prohibited items for the 2027 CSAT in July.

No outlet we read names Meta, Google or any other maker, and none says the glasses must be registered or banned outside exams. The coverage describes rules for exam takers only. We found nothing on exceptions for prescription or medical smart glasses, and we found no response from glasses makers.

The Seoul Economic Daily says the measures follow "a string of cheating cases involving smart glasses at various exams." Its English text is AI-translated from Korean, so quotes from Korean sources may not match the original wording.

How this compares elsewhere

Exam rules that name smart glasses are not unique to Korea. In the US, our guide to written smart-glasses rules found that the College Board's SAT names them, while ETS's TOEFL rule lists "electronic, recording, listening, scanning or photographic devices" and doesn't mention glasses. That guide also notes Norway's government said on Oct. 5 it plans a temporary ban on camera-equipped glasses in schools and other public places, and it isn't law yet. We did not search for other countries' exam-specific rules.

If you want to know whether filming with smart glasses is legal in the US, our recording guide covers US recording law.

What we don't know yet

• The ministry's full text, which we haven't read.
• When the Higher Education Act amendment would pass.
• Whether the three-year suspension would apply to glasses that are only carried.
• Whether any university will adopt the longer suspension this year.
• Whether detectors will be bought.