KNEC Warns 2024 KCSE Candidates Against Using SMS for Results.
The Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC) has issued a warning about a misleading post circulating online that claimed to provide details on how to check the recently released Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) results via SMS.
The council clarified that this information was inaccurate and urged candidates, parents, and other stakeholders to disregard it.
The flagged post instructed candidates to send their examination details to the number 20076, with assurances that standard SMS charges would apply. Additionally, the post advised students to call a toll-free KNEC line, which further lent credibility to the false claims.
The notice concluded by stating that examination results slips would only be accessible at the examination centers where candidates sat for their exams.
Official Results Access Method
Contrary to the misleading post, during the release of the 2024 KCSE results, Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba announced that the results could only be accessed via KNEC’s official website at results.knec.ac.ke.
Candidates are required to input their exam registration details on the portal to view their results online. The SMS service, once a popular method for accessing results, was discontinued ahead of the 2023 KCSE results release in an effort to enhance efficiency.
Despite the shift to an online-only results retrieval system, many students faced delays in accessing their results. Shortly after the release, the KNEC portal crashed due to overwhelming traffic. According to KNEC, the site experienced up to 300,000 hits per second, causing a system overload.
| Reason for Crash | Impact |
|---|---|
| High traffic: 300,000 hits/second | Portal crashed; delayed access for many candidates |
In a statement addressing the issue, KNEC reassured the public that all candidates would eventually gain access to their results. The council urged patience, noting that the delays were temporary.
The shift away from the SMS system has left many candidates and parents stranded, as they were accustomed to the convenience of the offline service. This unfamiliarity has made them more susceptible to falling victim to misinformation spread by unscrupulous sources.
Past Challenges with SMS Service
The decision to discontinue the SMS service was previously explained by the former Education CS, Ezekiel Machogu.
He noted that engineers had been engaged to address recurring technical issues associated with the SMS code, which had failed to deliver consistent results in the past. However, even with the improved system, issues such as high traffic and delays have persisted.
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The introduction of a centralized online portal is a step toward modernization but has also highlighted the need for robust infrastructure to handle the surge in traffic during results release periods.
Meanwhile, KNEC continues to caution stakeholders to rely only on official communication channels to avoid falling victim to misinformation.
KNEC Warns 2024 KCSE Candidates Against Using SMS for Results.
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