What is placed across a sample container cap to indicate tampering?

• A. Sealing wax
• B. Seal tape
• C. Tamper seal
• D. Plastic cap

Answer: (B)

Tamper-evident protection is built into how samples are handled, so there’s a quick, visual way to see if a cap has been opened. A strip of seal tape laid across the cap serves this purpose: it runs over the cap and onto the bottle neck, and it’s designed to show a break or a pattern change if someone tries to remove or reseal it. That visible disruption lets you know the sample’s integrity has been compromised and helps preserve the chain of custody. Sealing wax isn’t as practical for modern containers, and a plain plastic cap doesn’t indicate tampering on its own. A tamper-evident mechanism describes the function, but the exact item used across the cap in many settings is seal tape.