Verity journal

On 8 March 2018, the Malaysian Insight reported that a former lecturer was caught having cheated his employer by falsifying documents about his doctorate credentials. Although the offence was committed 10 years ago, he is now facing a jail term between 1 and 10 years, with the additional punishment of whipping and liable to a fine.

Despite the hefty penalty that the offence carries, cases involving fake degrees and certifications are unfortunately becoming more common. In October last year, the Malay Mail Online and Kosmo both reported that the Ministry of Higher Education had filed police reports after discovering a syndicate specializing in fake degrees and was selling them for around RM1,000 to RM3,000 each.  

With the impending arrival of 2020 and the nation’s wish to be a scientific and progressive society, there is great emphasis on Malaysians that are seeking gainful employment to first possess degrees and relevant qualifications. However, it seems many believe that life would be easier by cheating and lying.

The issue of fake degrees has become such a concern for our country, that the Ministry of Higher Education is working on a central database for degree holders.

At Verity Intelligence, we have conducted background screening for more than 700 customers and on average we are exposing 40 to 50 individuals per month – with fake degrees or had falsified their CVs in one way or the other.

We’ve also made front-page news discussing this issue with Kosmo and The Star.

The position of a lecturer or a teacher usually comes with a significant expectation that they would be trustworthy and credible. The latest article definitely gives all of us some pause. Perhaps it would be wiser to do all we can to verify a candidate before giving them a job of any significance.

To the uninitiated, real and fake certificates are almost identical. Thus, it is important to get help from an expert who knows what to look for.

The Verity Intelligence method of background screening would be able to determine if the person actually completed his/her degree, and whether that degree is truly genuine.

We talk about issues like this each week! If you want more, stay tuned to this blog at www.verityintel.com for updates and insights.