FBI agents cheated on an internal exam by conferring, using crib sheets, and finding answers on computers, a Department of Justice probe has found.
Staff were required to take a test on their knowledge of new unified guidelines on domestic investigations.
Suspicions were raised when many passed the 90-minute exam in just 20 minutes.
The authors of the report said "a significant number of FBI employees engaged in some form of improper conduct or cheating".
After the controversial guidelines were introduced, staff were required to take 16.5 hours of classroom tuition and then take a 51-question computerised exam that was expected to take most people between 90 minutes and two hours.
They were allowed access to the guidelines while taking the test, which was mostly sat between May 2009 and January 2010.
The Office of the Inspector General was called in to investigate after 200 workers passed the test in under 20 minutes.
After interviewing staff in a number of field offices, investigators found people taking the exam had conferred, and that direct cheating had been employed.
BBC News
