The Higher Education Ministry will be making a police report on the alleged sale of academic certificates from schools to higher education levels as reported by a local newspaper yesterday.

Its minister Zambry Abd Kadir said the move reflects the seriousness of the ministry which will not compromise in taking strict action against any public higher education institution, private higher education institution or individual found to be involved.

"I would like to remind both institutions not to allow this kind of activity to continue because it will confuse the public and damage the image of the institution or the university.

"The ministry will continue to be committed to ensuring that the higher education system is not marred by such illegal activities," he said in a statement today.

The media reported syndicates selling fake academic certificates online which were openly promoted on social media at between RM1,500 and RM4,000.

The scam allegedly targets individuals who are desperate to have academic qualifications for finding a job.

Zambry said there have been several cases of academic certificate fraud that have been successfully unravelled before through public complaints involving fraud syndicates by deceiving victims using the name of higher education institutions.

He said the Higher Education Department is monitoring and regulating private institutions continuously in accordance with the Private Educational Institutions Act 1996 (Act 555) related to the issuance of fake certificates.

In addition, he said, the ministry has a standard operating procedure that is implemented to ensure the validity of academic certificates for verification by the public.

He advised the public to be alert and careful with the tricks of the fraud syndicate and the sale of academic certificates.

The public can check the qualifications and information regarding recipients of Honourary Degrees and Doctoral Degrees on the ministry’s Great portal.

- Bernama

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