Consider the reliability of the documents by checking their format, mode of delivery, and verification process in the context of the education system of the issuing country.
- Assume that the documents are genuine, unless there is evidence that suggests otherwise.
- Check the formats of the documents, and update your organization’s information system about any new acceptable format (e.g., an encrypted digital document transmitted through a trusted digital exchange network or wallet).
- Confirm that the documents meet your organization’s standards for secure mode of delivery. Such modes may include being:
- mailed by the issuing educational institution in a stamped and sealed envelope;
- sent by the issuing educational institution from a verified official email account;
- shared by the issuing educational institution or an authorized document-issuing third-party service through a secure trusted transmission channel (e.g., a digital exchange network or wallet).
- Conduct external verification based on the issuing country, educational institution, or documents submitted (if applicable), such as:
- contacting the educational institution directly;
- using document-verification services offered by the educational institution, a competent authority, a trusted digital exchange network or wallet, or a trusted third party;
- finding alternative evidence, such as official lists of graduates and databases of graduation theses and dissertations.
In the process:
- consider the contexts of the issuing countryand educational institution, as well as the time during which study and academic credential issuance occurred. Be mindful of:
- what is typically expected of all applicants in similar situations;
- practices (e.g., official email accounts not based on the educational institution’s domain) that are anomalous in some countries but common in others;
- official or widely accepted document-delivery mechanisms (e.g., authorized document-issuing services other than educational institutions, along with their data formats and methods of transmission);
- previously reported situations in which fraudulent practices may have been encountered relatively frequently, such as:
- the purchase of fake documents;
- illegitimately issued documents;
- the alteration of original documents;
- the use of non-trusted document-delivery mechanisms;
- recognize the digitalization trends in document issuance, delivery, and verification and the growing third-party services authorized to issue and/or verify academic documents;
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beware of digital frauds (e.g., email and website spoofing, non-trusted digital exchange networks or wallets).