Largest Penalty Fine Ever by the SEC for Ernst &Young (EY) Cheating

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According to the New York Times, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said the cheating involved hundreds of EY’s workers from 2017 to 2021, resulted in the largest penalty ever imposed by the agency against an auditing firm.

Questions:

  1. What amount was the fine imposed by U.S. securities regulators?
  2. What were the three (3) charges against the accounting firm?
  3. Which other Big 4 accounting firm had similar allegations of cheating by auditors on internal training exams?
  4. Was this the first instance of widespread cheating on ethics exams by EY employees? Explain.

Source:

Goldstein, M. (2022). Ernst & Young to Pay $100 Million Fine After Auditors Cheated on Ethics Exams. The New York Times, June 28 (Retrievable online at https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/28/business/ernst-young-sec-cheating.html)