In the media

A journalist from the Mail and Guardian reveals the growing trend of fake degrees, provided by Ashford University and Belford University, which offer life experience qualifications on a fee-only basis, without the need for training or study. These documents are available on the Internet and are being included on resumes at all levels of the employment sector.

A world-renowned expert on the reduction of risks involved in heart surgery has been dismissed from Erasmus University Medical Centre in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, after violation of academic integrity. In one study it was found that he used patient data without permission, used fictitious data, and that two reports were submitted to conferences which included knowingly unreliable data.

According to the most recent report of Accredibase, the UK-based background screening company Verifile Limited, there was a staggering 48% increase in the number of known degree or diploma mills operating worldwide last year. It identified more than 2,500 bogus institutions across all regions, but primarily in North America and Europe.

The study "Plagiarism and the Web" analyzed more than 33.5 million papers submitted to the Turnitin service from June 2010 to June 2011. In those papers, iParadigms' researchers found 128 million "content matches" from a wide variety of Web sources.

A Tilburg University inquiry has recommended that details of forgery of documents and fraud committed by a leading social psychologist should be passed to the Dutch public prosecution service.

The University of Wales will cease to exist after mounting a series of damaging revelations. An investigation revealed last week that overseas students at Rayat London College, in Hounslow, were sold diploma exam answers in advance of taking the test.

The number of fake universities operating in the country has risen from 44 to 51 National Universities Commission (NUC) has alerted. According to the weekly news bulletin of NUC, eight of the universities had been taken to court, while some are currently undergoing investigations.

University of Peshawar's Vice Chancellor has been found involved in plagiarism by the Higher Education Commission (HEC) that was constituted to probe into the matter.

A tell-all blog post by a New York University professor claims that more than 20 business students at the elite private university plagiarized portions of the work they submitted for one of his classes. Criticism by students in their evaluation of the professor resulted in a financial penalty for him, he says.

Yet another senior German politician is the focus of questions about his doctoral thesis. Lower Saxony's Minister of Cultural Affairs is alleged to have quoted incorrectly several sources in his dissertation, creating the impression that he originated more of the content than was actually the case.