The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Thursday evening issued an advisory urging students, parents, educators, and media platforms to refrain from sharing unverified claims or speculative interpretations regarding QR codes printed on question papers.
The advisory comes amid recent viral claims involving QR codes in CBSE exams, which gained traction on social media for reasons unrelated to the examination. During the Class 12 History exam held on March 30, students reported that scanning a QR code on the question paper led to search results related to Orry, a well-known internet personality. Videos of students scanning the code quickly circulated online, drawing widespread attention.
Orry himself reacted to the incident, posting a video in which he scanned the QR code and saw his own search page appear. "It felt like a dream to be featured on a CBSE exam paper," he said, expressing surprise at the unexpected attention.
Clarifying the role of QR codes in question papers, the CBSE stated, "The QR codes printed on CBSE question papers are not intended to function as direct internet hyperlinks. These codes are part of internal systems for authentication, tracking, and examination integrity, and do not open as web links when scanned. Rather, they show the intended text. However, if the user opts to use Google search on the text, Google search suggests certain other words. This doesn't occur if standard browsers such as Chrome are used."
The board further emphasized that any unrelated web results are algorithm-driven outputs and bear no connection to CBSE or its examination processes.
In its advisory, the board highlighted that some individuals are deliberately misrepresenting these search results to spread false propaganda. The CBSE warned, "The linking of QR codes to unrelated individuals or content is factually incorrect and misleading."
The board has advised all stakeholders to exercise caution:
- Refrain from sharing unverified claims or speculative interpretations.
- Verify facts through official CBSE communications before dissemination.
- Avoid amplifying content that could distort the credibility of the institution.
This is not the first instance of such online misinterpretation. During the Class 12 Mathematics exam on March 9, students who scanned the QR code were redirected to the song Never Gonna Give You Up by Rick Astley, a popular internet prank known as "rickrolling." While the incident amused students, the board clarified that the papers were genuine and that QR codes are purely security features to authenticate examination papers, not gateways to unrelated content.
