CBSE Board Exam 2026: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) issued a crucial advisory refuting the viral claims floating on social media regarding the QR code on CBSE question papers. The Board requested parents and students to avoid sharing these unverified claims or believing such speculations. 

In its advisory, the Board clarified that QR codes printed on the question papers are used for authentication, tracking, and ensuring examination integrity. These QR codes do not function as web links as social media claims. Scanning these codes will display coded texts that are not linked to any external websites or multimedia content.

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CBSE Board Exam 2026: What’s The Controversy?

The QR code controversy arose when students reported that scanning a QR code on the Class 12 History paper on March 30 led to search results related to Orry. Getting Thai much attention, he reacted, “It felt like a dream to be featured on a CBSE exam paper”. 

This created an online buzz among students similar to the one that had erupted earlier during the March 9 Mathematics exam. In that, students said that they were being redirected to Rick Astley’s song, Never Gonna Give Up, a well-known internet prank or “rickroll”.

CBSE Board’s Clarification

The CBSE has taken a firm stance and said, "The linking of QR codes to unrelated individuals or content  is factually incorrect and misleading.” Furthermore, it added that there are certain elements that are creating confusion among students and damaging the institution’s credibility through the misinterpretation of output searches. 

CBSE Board Exam Unaffected and Evaluation Is Ongoing

The Board has reiterated the fact that the codes are technical safeguards used to verify the question paper's authenticity. It has nothing to do with the ongoing controversy. This clarification was much needed amid the heightened social media scrutiny during the ongoing board exam, where a small anomaly escalates into viral narratives. 

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