The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has issued a strong advisory after claims surfaced online that QR codes printed on Class 12 board examination papers redirected students to unrelated internet pages, including a profile of social media personality Orhan Awatramani, popularly known as Orry. The board dismissed the allegations as misinformation and warned against attempts to “malign the image of CBSE.”

The clarification comes amid a spate of viral posts by students and influencers alleging that the QR codes embedded in board question papers led to external websites or pop-culture content when scanned.

Board says QR codes are for ‘internal use only’

In its statement, CBSE said misleading content was circulating regarding the purpose of the printed QR codes.

"It has come to the notice that certain misleading information is in circulation regarding QR codes printed on CBSE question papers," the board noted, stressing that they serve only administrative purposes.

"Stakeholders are requested to note that these QR codes are meant for internal authentication and not for accessing internet links. Any misleading claims circulating online are factually incorrect and unrelated to CBSE examination processes."

Dr Sanyam Bhardwaj, Controller of Examinations, further clarified the technical function of the codes, stating, "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 searches certain other words. This doesn’t occur if standard browsers such as Chrome are used."

Claims triggered by Orry’s Instagram video

The controversy gained traction after Orry posted an Instagram reel claiming that the QR code printed on the front page of the Class 12 History paper, held on March 30, redirected to an online page about him.

CBSE has now categorically rejected this, explaining that unrelated search results appear only when users manually input QR-related alphanumeric strings into search engines.

"It has been observed that when users attempt to interpret or manually search QR-related strings online, unrelated search results, including references to any individual/entity, are shown," the board said.

"Such web results are algorithm-driven search outputs and bear no connection to CBSE or its examination processes."

The board added that “certain elements” were twisting these algorithmic outcomes to spread false information, warning that such actions were aimed at creating “false propaganda and malign the image of CBSE.”

Previous Rick Astley ‘Rickroll’ claims also refuted

This is not the first time QR codes on CBSE papers have attracted viral speculation. Earlier, some students claimed that the Class 12 Mathematics question paper’s QR code redirected scanners to the YouTube page of Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up.” The board dismissed that claim as well, saying "that the question papers are genuine. The security of the question papers remains uncompromised."

CBSE urges caution, seeks responsible sharing

The national board has appealed to students, parents, teachers and media platforms to refrain from circulating unverified or speculative interpretations regarding examination materials. It advised the public to rely solely on official CBSE communications to avoid amplifying misinformation.