New Delhi, June 2: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has reported a cyber attack on its newly launched re-evaluation and marks verification portal. In a startling revelation, the board disclosed that the portal experienced 1.5 million hits within just two minutes, with over 100,000 unauthorized attempts to access files.
Despite the cyber attack, the board confirmed that the portal continued to function normally. By Tuesday afternoon, more than 16,000 students had submitted their applications. The re-evaluation portal was initially scheduled to go live on Monday but faced delays due to technical issues, prompting the board to repeatedly announce that it would be operational soon. Ultimately, the portal was made live at 7 AM on Tuesday and will remain open until June 6.
Students have raised concerns regarding discrepancies in the On-Screen Marking (OSM) system, with one affected student, Sarthak Siddhant, presenting his findings to a parliamentary committee. He identified at least 15 irregularities in the tender process related to the OSM system.
In response to the ongoing controversies surrounding answer sheet alterations and grading disputes, the Ministry of Education has requested a report from CBSE regarding the tender awarded to COEMPT. Reports suggest that the ministry is considering strict action against the officials involved.
The timeline of events is as follows:
– May 13: CBSE announced the results of the 12th board exams.
– May 19: A portal for post-result complaints was launched but crashed on the first day.
– May 22: The deadline for obtaining photocopies of answer sheets was extended multiple times.
– May 25: CBSE sought assistance from two IITs to rectify the portal.
– June 1: The OSM-related portal failed to open throughout the day.
– June 2: The board announced the portal’s launch, which will remain accessible until June 6.
The Indian Youth Congress has announced plans to intensify its nationwide protests against irregularities in examinations, demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. The protests will include torch rallies, student outreach programs, and demonstrations across various states, although specific dates have yet to be disclosed.
This situation continues to unfold as students and authorities navigate the implications of the cyber attack and the ongoing controversies surrounding the CBSE examination process.