The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has strongly denied allegations of a security breach in its digital answer sheet evaluation portal, following claims made by a 19-year-old self-proclaimed ethical hacker. The board clarified that the URL circulating on social media, cbse.onmarks.co.in, was a testing platform containing only sample data and was not connected to actual student records or evaluation processes.
Hacker Alleges Compromise of Evaluation System
The controversy began in February 2026 when a Class 12 student asserted that the CBSE's digital evaluation portal had been compromised. These allegations quickly gained traction online, fueling existing student concerns regarding transparency in the board's post-result and re-evaluation procedures, particularly under the newly introduced On-Screen Marking (OSM) mechanism.
CBSE Refutes Claims, Cites Testing Platform
In an official statement, CBSE firmly stated, "At the outset, it is clarified that the portal used for evaluation of answer books bore a different URL, which has neither been compromised nor have the vulnerabilities indicated in the social media post." The board emphasized that the platform in question was merely a testing environment, devoid of any live student information or marks.
The board further reassured all stakeholders about the robust safeguards implemented to ensure the integrity and security of the operational evaluation platform. They maintained that no vulnerabilities affecting actual assessment processes have been detected or reported, and neither marks nor student information stored on the actual evaluation portal had been compromised at any point.
Ongoing Debate Over Clarification
The situation escalated when, after CBSE issued an initial clarification tweet, the student alleged the board subsequently deleted the post. The student then claimed that even the revised URL shared in CBSE's clarification itself contained technical vulnerabilities, reigniting the debate rather than resolving the concerns.
Integrity of On-Screen Marking System Defended
CBSE reiterated its confidence in the On-Screen Marking mechanism, which was introduced this year as part of a broader initiative to digitize the evaluation process. The board highlighted that the platform incorporates grievance redressal mechanisms for students and stressed that strict security measures are consistently in place to protect the integrity of the evaluation system.