The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has issued an advisory warning students, parents and media against “misinformation” surrounding QR codes in question papers. It explained that the codes are not clickable web links but are part of its internal systems designed to authenticate, track and maintain the integrity of the scan.
“They do not open as web links when scanned and only display the intended text,” said the warning issued late Thursday amid reports of users manually searching for QR-linked strings online and encountering irrelevant results, including references to individuals.
The clarification came in the wake of an online uproar after QR codes on CBSE question papers, especially the March 30 Class 12 History paper, created confusion among students. Some claimed that scanning the codes led to search results related to the influencer Orry.
The question paper carried three QR codes. The first showed “61501” (the paper code), the second showed “HHIISSTT” (the first three letters of the subject) and the third showed “OORRRYYY” (the last three letters of the subject).
When students searched for the garbled text online, search engines automatically corrected it to “Orry,” resulting in irrelevant results. On April 1, Uri posted a video on Instagram joking about the episode, calling it a “very high and fitting honour” to appear on the national examination paper. He added that he felt “humbled to be a part of Indian history, both literary and metaphorical”.
The advice stressed that such results are “algorithmic-driven output” of search engines and have no connection to their screening processes.
CBSE said some elements are deliberately distorting irrelevant search results to create false propaganda and harm the board. Associating QR codes with unrelated individuals or content is factually incorrect and misleading.
The bulletin urged people to refrain from sharing unverified allegations and rely only on official communication channels for information. “Be careful not to amplify content that may distort institutional credibility.”
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She reiterated the need for responsible information sharing, stressing that only verified and factual details should be circulated to maintain public confidence in examination systems.
A QR code found in a Grade 12 maths paper (March 9) led to a YouTube video of Rick Astley’s 1987 song “Never Gonna Give You Up”, which was the focus of one of the internet’s longest-running pranks. Rickrolling, as the prank is known, involves tricking someone into clicking on a link that unexpectedly leads to the music video.
The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on March 10 quashed concerns over the integrity of the exam, issuing a press release asserting that the question papers are authentic. “The security of question papers remains non-negotiable,” Sanyam Bhardwaj, Controller of CBSE Exams, said in a statement.
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The board said the problem “appears” to be limited to a few sets of question papers in which a QR code, when scanned, links to a YouTube video.
CBSE started printing QR codes on question papers after a paper leak in 2019, when Class 12 Economics and Class 10 Maths papers were circulated on social media and messaging platforms ahead of exams. The leak forced the board of directors to reconduct the economics exam for the twelfth grade. The council decided not to reconduct the mathematics exam for the tenth grade, saying that dropouts were limited and many students attended.
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Each QR code on a question paper usually acts as a digital identifier, encapsulating information such as the subject, exam date, question paper set, and print set. The identifiers help authorities trace the chain of distribution of question papers and trace the source in case of a leak. When scanned with a regular mobile phone, they generally display either an encrypted string or a set of alphanumeric identifiers linked to CBSE’s internal database, which authorized systems can then decrypt to verify the origin of the paper.
