Suspicions of large-scale cheating have prompted a judicial investigation into Spain’s Social Security administrative exams, held in A Coruña last September. Now before a local judge, the probe follows complaints from candidates, alongside submissions from the public prosecutor and the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration. Of 23,000 candidates nationwide, the 34 highest theoretical scores all came from the A Coruña test site.
The selection process has continued despite the investigation. At least thirty candidates named in formal complaints have already been appointed as civil servants, angering other applicants. Some say people suspected of irregularities should not be allowed to handle sensitive matters such as pensions or retirements. Others, who narrowly missed out on a position, criticize what they see as the authorities’ failure to suspend the process.
Opened in May, the court case remains at an early stage. The Tribunal Superior de Xustiza de Galicia (TSXG) says the judge has not yet summoned anyone as a suspect, and the proceedings remain secret. The Ministry says current regulations prevent it from suspending or excluding candidates without concrete evidence of fraud. Officials argue that administrative law requires a minimum evidentiary basis before appointments can be excluded or provisionally suspended.
One complaint alleges that around thirty successful candidates used electronic devices, including earpieces or digital glasses, to receive answers during the exam. The twenty complainants point to the extraordinary scores and to personal or professional ties among some of those who achieved them. For example, two siblings reportedly received identical scores and made the same mistakes. Two bar employees from Pontevedra and a friend also had matching results in both test sections. In A Coruña, seven candidates scored perfectly on the 70-question theory section, while the site accounted for half of the top 50 overall scores.
The Ministry acknowledges that the results were irregular. The department led by Elma Saiz opened an internal investigation and referred the matter to the prosecutor’s office, citing the unusual statistical deviation in A Coruña. It found no evidence of wrongdoing by its own staff, but could not explain the anomaly beyond the data itself. Officials reportedly said they were surprised by the results and had been the first to notice the irregularity.
The allegations also come as Galicia pursues a separate effort to tighten rules against electronic cheating in public-service exams. A report published on 18 October 2026 said the Xunta planned to amend four articles of the Lei de Emprego Público, or Public Employment Law. Under the proposed structure, using an unauthorized device to obtain or transmit information, or otherwise help its transfer, would be treated as a very serious offence. Possessing or having access to a device capable of storing information, or accessing it for transmission or reception, could be a serious offence. The reported proposed penalties are exclusion from public examinations for five years for the most serious conduct and two years for possession or access. This is a separate Galician regulatory initiative; it does not establish that devices were used in the Social Security examination under investigation.
At least four administrative lawsuits have also been filed. The Ministry has since announced tighter controls for future exams. Candidates say this year’s Social Security exams had stronger security, with mobile phones and headphones banned, unlike at the contested session. The Boletín Oficial del Estado (BOE) recently published the list of successful candidates. Some candidates who scored perfectly in A Coruña have not submitted the required documents to take up their posts, which complainants see as further evidence of irregularities. Some say those under suspicion should be temporarily removed from their new roles. They describe the situation as blatant and point to the uncomfortable atmosphere in affected offices.
Spain’s civil service exams are highly competitive, with thousands vying for stable public-sector jobs. Their integrity is basic to public trust. Allegations of cheating are rare, but the A Coruña investigation shows the difficulty of ensuring fairness in large-scale testing and could set precedents for handling suspected irregularities in future public-sector recruitment across Spain.
