Claim: Results for the September 2024 Licensure Examination for Professional Teachers (LEPT) are now out and can be accessed through shortened links provided in Facebook posts.
Rating: FALSE
Why we fact-checked this: Multiple Facebook pages have been posting shortened links purportedly leading to the exam results, with the most popular post gaining 718 reactions, 55 comments, and 17 shares as of writing. These posts have also been shared to Facebook groups with up to 200,000 members.
Some posts include the names and pictures of supposed exam topnotchers, while others show statistics about the purported results.
The facts: The links in these posts are fake, with some redirecting to fake job posts and application sites already debunked by Rappler.
The posts were uploaded by Facebook pages posing as the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC), including the page named “PRC Updates.” In an August 2023 advisory, the PRC said the page is “not, in any way, connected to/or is duly authorized by the PRC.”
Official results: The PRC has not yet released results for the most recent LEPT held in September. However, the commission’s target release date for the exam results is December 13, 2024, according to its 2024 schedule of examinations.
Media outlets like Rappler also post official board exam results based on press releases from the PRC.
Consequently, the names of supposed topnotchers and board passers mentioned in the misleading posts are unverified. One of these posts falsely claims that Mikaela Andrea Bonador is the September 2024 board exam topnotcher, when she was actually among the topnotchers in the March 2023 exams.
Malware and phishing risk: URL checker VirusTotal also flagged the links in the misleading posts for possible phishing. Filling out forms provided in these dubious links may expose users to potential data loss and identity theft. (READ: Phishing 101: How to spot and avoid phishing)
Previous fact-checks: Rappler has debunked other claims about fake links:
- FACT CHECK: Application link to PRC job vacancies posted by fake page
- FACT CHECK: Link to fast food chain’s P7,000 ‘Christmas gift’ is fake
- FACT CHECK: DSWD ‘Christmas bonus’ post, registration form are fake
- FACT CHECK: ‘BFP job application’ post contains fake links
- FACT CHECK: Link for ‘PCAFPD scholarship’ is fake
For legitimate updates, visit the PRC’s official website and Facebook page. – Shay Du/Rappler.com
Shay Du is a graduate of Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program. This fact check was reviewed by a member of Rappler’s research team and a senior editor. Learn more about Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program here.
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