FAKE degrees are very much in demand in Malaysia and may be had as cheaply as RM12,000, a survey by The Malaysian Insight revealed.

Syndicates are selling them openly on the internet and a Google search to “buy a fake degree” turns up numerous websites where they may be purchased.

Convincing fake degrees from local universities can be bought at a “discount price” of RM12,000, while those from the more prestigious institutions are available for RM17,000.

Fake degrees from abroad are more expensive, starting at RM20,000, while some websites deal only in US dollars.

The Malaysian Insight launched the survey following recent revelations that some cabinet members allegedly possessed fake qualifications.

A blogger had recently revealed that Deputy Foreign Minister Marzuki Yahya’s “Cambridge degree” was from a US-based institution instead of the elite institution of the same name in the UK.

Checks by The Malaysian Insight revealed that degree mills assure the customers that their forgeries  can pass verification by the corresponding universities as the price of the degree also includes tampering with the records of the said institutions.

It is learnt many parents are willing to fork out the money for fake papers for their children.

They cost half the sum required to obtain a legitimate degree with none of the years of study, which appeals to students with sub par results and for adults with work experience but lack academic qualifications.

The Malaysian Insight got in touch with one man who said he can provide diplomas or degrees in all fields of study.

“It depends on which one you want, we have for both local and international universities. For international universities, it is cheaper because we have insiders, and it is more convenient (to produce fakes),” he said.

The fields of expertise to be set down in a fake certificate offered include engineering, mass communications, accounting, business, computer science and similar courses.

Negotiable prices

The man initially offered a diploma at RM16,500 and a degree at RM18,500, but after negotiations, the price of a degree was reduced to RM17,000. He would not budge on the price of the diploma, however.

“When I sold it (diploma) to my friend, it was RM16,500. He even introduced his friends to buy from me after that,” he said.

In a bid to convince the writer, the man said he had sold the fakes to his three previous customers at higher prices.

“I sold to this man at a higher price because he got in touch with me via a middleman from Singapore. For another woman, she wanted to buy a degree for her son to further his studies in China, I sold it to her for RM19,000.

“Another customer wanted a recommendation letter from the university, we did that for her for RM18,000,” he said.

When the writer expressed interest in a business diploma from an international university, the man sent photographs of several samples of degrees from several universities.

Not only are the font, layout and design of the fakes virtually indistinguishable from the real deal, the certificates also bear the signatures of the universities’ vice-chancellors and registrars, and the student’s “grade”.

The Malaysian Insight also got in touch with another person offering similar services who communicated in English. The contact sells fake diplomas both from local and foreign universities.

This contact, however, was more cautious, and asked the writer where did he find out about his services. When told it was through the Internet, he gave details of the services he provided.

However, he was still cautious and would not reveal too much, such as how many certificates can be purchased at the same time.

Pay half upfront

“A bachelor’s degree is usually sold for US$3,500 (about RM14,000). I’ll need you to pay 50% as booking fee. You can pay the rest when you receive the digital copy or after verifying your degree with the university concerned. After that, we will send to you the physical certificate,” he said.

After some haggling, he agreed to reduce the price by RM2,000, and said a degree in mass communication from a local private university can now be bought for RM12,000.

The writer then asked how much would it cost for a diploma from Australia’s Tasmania University.

“We can do that too, but it will cost US$5,500.”

The man also sent photographs of samples which included a bachelor’s degree in computer science from an international university and a bachelor’s degree in architecture from another university.

One of the samples had the Foreign Ministry’s rubber stamp mark, seemingly indicating government approval to shore up legitimacy.

Even though forging the certificate itself, which is just a piece of paper, is easy, records of the universities in question have to be tampered with and that takes between 15 days and a month.

They also let the customer choose their preferred payment method, which is limited to either online transfer or local bank transfer to avoid face to face contact with the seller. – February 18, 2019.