If you don't cheat, you're at a competitive disadvantage. ETS found several instances of cheating and didn't even reveal what it discovered. It was not until The New York Times conducted an investigation that the many cases of cheating were revealed to the public. ETS had full knowledge of what was going on, but decided not to disclose the information. Cheating has come to mire the institution of education and standardized testing, and this affects us all.
Recent findings conclude that cheating is a bigger problem than previously believed.
The study found that students taking ETS-administered graduate school entrance exams passed along the questions and answers to test takers in other time zones. There were also cases where people who speak no English had certificates indicating they passed English and civics tests. Bribes were also found to have been given to test givers. The company's dishonesty is very disturbing. It has lied and kept important information from officials so that they wouldn't be forced to take measures to tighten test security.