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During a Senate hearing on Charter change in the Philippines, concerns were raised by education experts regarding the potential risks associated with opening higher education to foreign ownership. An education adviser highlighted the country's reputation for diploma mills, warning that it could attract low-quality foreign universities instead of prestigious institutions. Despite debates over Resolution of Both Houses (RBH) 6 which proposes opening up higher education to foreign ownership, concerns persist regarding the regulation of substandard institutions and the potential commercialization of education.

A recent study draws attention to the disturbing trend of 'Life Experience Degree Offerings' (LEDOs) provided by diploma mills, shedding light on how these products deceive consumers. LEDOs exploit the concept of 'accreditation of prior learning' and seek to provide qualifications solely based on submitted resumes or CVs rather than genuine experience. The study reveals that despite the potential socioeconomic gains, LEDOs disregard the true value of education, using artefacts like diplomas to prioritize perceived legitimacy over the educational process itself. Additionally, the research highlights the lack of proper guidance on money laundering risks and the use of students as 'money mules.'

Fake Degrees and Fraudulent Credentials in Higher Education brings together contributions from authors in different fields and parts of the world, offering an overview of various aspects of academic fraud and highlighting the erosion of trust in academia and academics that systematically accompanies such cases. In the first chapter of the book on contract cheating and paper mills, we learn that the worldwide fake degree industry has grown from US$1 billion in 2015 to US$22 billion in 2022. Experts estimate that 4.7 billion people hold or have held fake diplomas.

Under the new measures approved on academic integrity for all its candidates, all Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) members standing for election will have to list their degrees and sign an academic ethics statement declaring that they did not engage in plagiarism, falsification or ghostwriting when writing their theses. This follows the revoke of various doctoral degrees of DPP members for plagiarism allegations.

Academics in Algeria are concerned about the practice of ordering and paying for ready-made theses that are growing among students at all levels, including masters and Ph.D. The amount of money requested by the “institution” ranges between DZD50, 000 (US$420) and DZD200, 000 (US$1,670) depending on the quality of service, educational level, and the period taken to deliver the requested thesis.

Thousands of UK nationals have bought fake degrees from a multi-million pound "diploma mill" in Pakistan, a BBC Radio 4's File on Four programme investigation has found. Buyers include NHS consultants, nurses and a large defence contractor. One British buyer spent almost £500,000 on bogus documents. The Department for Education said it was taking "decisive action to crack down on degree fraud" that "cheats genuine learners

Pakistan’s Higher Education Commission this month issued a public notice listing 153 illegal universities and degree-awarding institutions. A large number of illegal universities mentioned in the HEC notice do not exist, some are run from apartments and commercial buildings and issue degrees not recognised by higher education authorities of the federal or provincial governments. Academics say, however, the rising trend of fake universities cannot be discouraged without punitive action against the management of the bogus institutions.

Bearing names similar to top universities, China's fake colleges woo and swindle high school graduates through slick recruitment websites. A list released by sdaxue.com, a site that helps students choose higher educational institutions, has exposed 60 Chinese "universities" or "colleges" as unaccredited diploma mills.