The Central Board of Secondary Education has issued a clarification following reports about the QR code printed in the CBSE Class 12 Mathematics 2026 examination held on March 9, 2026. The QR code printed on the question paper allegedly redirected users to a YouTube video of the song “Never Can Say Goodbye” by singer Rick Astley.
In the clarification issued by the board, CBSE has maintained that the question papers are genuine and their security remains unchallenged.
CBSE also added that while concerns over the authenticity of question papers have ended, the matter has been taken seriously and the board is taking necessary steps to ensure that such issues do not reoccur in the future.
A QR code on a Class 12 Maths paper redirected users to a YouTube video of the song “I’ll Never Give You Up” by English singer Rick Astley, which created confusion among students and raised concern over the authenticity of the question papers among the students concerned and their parents.
Several users claimed that scanning a QR code printed on paper opened the song’s video on YouTube – a well-known internet prank commonly referred to as “rickroll”.
CBSE Class 12 Mathematics 2026 exam was held on March 9 from 10.30 am to 1.30 pm. According to the teachers, the mathematics paper was well structured and balanced, with most of the questions based on the NCERT syllabus and the prescribed syllabus. The paper tested students’ conceptual understanding and problem-solving abilities. None of the questions were extra syllabus, making them accessible to students who had thoroughly prepared through NCERT and regular practice. Overall, it was a fair paper with a good mix of easy, medium and application-based questions.
