I see lots of conspiracy theories here. If it is so prevalent, IRCC would have taken measures to prevent this. Also, ECA and TRF are unique to candidates, so they would get caught immediately. I do not think one can just enter the pool without submitting them.
People should stop overthinking and simply accept the high cut-off score as the competition is higher due to obvious reasons.
Outland candidates under 30 with a CLB 10, master's degree, and three years of work experience get 481 which is more than enough to get an ITA these days.
FSW candidates from other English speaking countries can easily achieve this. They are opting to immigrate to Canada due to stringent immigration policies in other countries.
The Express Entry system is not complicated to understand at all, I will remind everyone about it here: The system invites top 'n' number of candidates and the candidates are ranked from #1 to #n during the draw. Let's say they are issuing 3500 ITAs, they invite candidates with ranks 1-3500 and the cut-off score is merely the score of the candidate with the 3500th rank. Tie-breaker time comes in only when there are multiple candidates with the cut-off score and the candidates (with the cut-off score) who created profiles earlier than the tie-breaking rule get ITAs.
Analyzing the recent draws gives us an idea of top-ranked candidates in the pool.
As of March 3, 2020, there were 568 candidates with more than 600 CRS points while 21,905 had scores in the range of 451-600. Most candidates with 600+ CRS scores have PNPs, so subtract them from the number of ITAs to get the number of candidates with scores in the range of the cutoff to 600. The last draw had a cut-off score of 471, so 3900-568 gives us 3,332 candidates with scores in the range of 471 to 600. Tie-breaking rule was Feb 24, 2020, which suggests 3,332 candidates are mostly new or improved their scores within the last two weeks.
I wish IRCC released data for 451-600 just like 401-450 in the increments of 10 points. The majority of candidates in the range 451-600 have scores below 471, we can get that number by subtracting 3,332 from 21,905 which gives us 18,573.
How can the cut-off go down? The cut-off score can go down if we have fewer candidates with 471+ scores entering the pool in the following weeks assuming that IRCC keeps the draw size consistent.
However, the last few draws do not indicate that. It is highly likely that an FST draw will take place this April. Historically, FST draws lead to a higher cut-off score. If you are a candidate with a score below 470 but can achieve 470+ by re-taking IELTS or CELPIP, now is your chance. Do not wait!