Portugal's 9th grade maths exam leaks online for second year running as school directors call for criminal investigation

What happened on exam day

On Monday, June 22, around 97,000 Portuguese 9th graders took the first phase of the national mathematics exam in two digital sessions, at 9:30 am and noon. The Ministry of Education intended the exam to remain confidential so that items could be reused in future years to track learning outcomes. By Monday evening, however, screenshots, recreations of the questions and even full paper recirculations began appearing on platforms like TikTok and in teacher groups.

A repeat leak raises security doubts

This is the second consecutive year that the confidential digital format has been compromised. Last year's exam, introduced as a pilot for comparable longitudinal assessment, also leaked online. As a result, the ministry developed this year's test independently, but the same vulnerabilities seem to have persisted. Teacher Daniel Rey, who built a "recreation" from student contributions, said many students were able to take screenshots because tablets were not locked, and some walked out with scratch paper that was not always collected.

“There are students from private schools who take the exam on tablets and manage to take screenshots because the system is not locked to prevent it. There are also students who bring the scratch paper.”

Ministry acknowledges leak but downplays impact

The Education Ministry confirmed the public sharing of exam items after the test, calling the situation "lamentável" (regrettable). It insisted the leak "has no impact on the conduct and validity of this year's exam, nor on the students' results," and said it is investigating the circumstances.

“The situation is regrettable, but it has no impact on the conduct and validity of this year's exam, nor on the students' results.”

The ministry reiterated that keeping tests non-public is meant to strengthen comparability of results over time and support evidence-based education policy.

School representatives push for criminal probe

The National Association of School Directors (ANDAEP) urged the Public Prosecutor's Office to investigate.

“This situation should be reported to the Public Prosecutor's Office, because it was not foreseeable, desirable and seems clearly illegal.”

ANDAEP president Filinto Lima argued the exam should become public in future, like secondary exams where the paper and marking criteria are released after a few hours. The movement Missão Escola Pública and the Association of Mathematics Teachers also demanded a formal inquiry and a return to paper tests until digital security can be guaranteed. Cristina Mota of MEP said the episode

“demonstrates that the system is violable and that digitisation undermines the rigour and credibility of external assessment.”

Broader testing turmoil

The maths leak comes just a week after a separate row over the 12th grade Portuguese exam, where a teacher noticed an exercise identical to one in a Leya workbook. The ministry responded that the exam had been drafted before the workbook's publication and that the author had no access to the exam, but it later ordered an audit of the procedures at the body that sets national exams, EduQA. Together, the incidents have intensified scrutiny of Portugal's digital exam infrastructure and the confidentiality protocols surrounding high-stakes tests.