Algerians get three years in jail for leaking exam papers

Algerian courts in several parts of the country have ordered prison time for defendants in cases related to leaking exam papers, the ministry of education has said.

In the southern province of Djelfa, two people were sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to pay a fine of 500,000 dinars ($4,000; £3,020) after they leaked the Arabic language exam papers online.

Other jail sentences ranging from 10 to 18 months have been ordered against people accused of posting national exam papers on social media in the provinces of Tebessa east and Laghouat south of the country, the Algerian press agency APS reported.

The leaking of exam papers has been a perplexing problem for the government in recent years with the ministry of communication technologies deciding to cut the internet during the exams period and exam boards banning electronic devices in their centres.

The Baccalaureate exams started this week throughout the country after a long delay due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Extra online security measures have been taken according the ministry of education to prevent cheating and leaking of exam papers.