How to check the authenticity of a diploma, is of interest to many employers who want to ensure the accuracy of the documents presented to them. We will tell you in this article how to check the authenticity of a diploma, whether it can be done online and how to do it if the document number is unknown - it outlines all the available verification methods and provides instructions for their implementation.

The need to verify the authenticity of the diploma

Most often, the question of how to verify the authenticity of a diploma arises for an employer when hiring a new employee for a vacant position. In this case, the algorithm of actions is fully regulated by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, and any deviations from it will be considered illegal.

However, the need to check your diploma is sometimes caused by other reasons. Especially now, when the Internet has become, if not the only, then the main source of recruiting household staff, a private provider of educational services, and even a life partner. For example, vigilance will not hurt when looking for a tutor or nanny for a child, as well as when collaborating with freelancers whose work requires special knowledge.

Verifying a diploma for authenticity: methods

How to check the authenticity of a diploma if you have doubts? There are several ways to do this, but only a few of them will provide a hundred percent result. So, if we are talking about establishing the reliability of the data that an applicant for a vacant position reported about himself, the employer, if he wants to follow the letter of the law, must perform the following actions:

1. Inform the owner of the diploma of the intention to conduct an inspection and obtain his written consent to this (otherwise there is a possibility of being held liable for the illegal use of personal data). Only law enforcement agencies have the unconditional right to check diplomas and other information about citizens.
2. Send an official request to the educational institution that issued the diploma. When the latter is dissolved, the request is sent to the address of the legal successor.

Important: not all educational institutions are willing to provide such information, but they are obliged to do this when the graduate himself applies. Therefore, if confirming the authenticity of a diploma is in the interests of its bearer, it is better to entrust this to him. The proof will be an official certificate certified by the head (rector) of the educational institution.

During a secret verification of a diploma, there can be no question of any request: at best, the management of the university/college will ignore it, at worst, they will report to law enforcement agencies about an attempt to illegally obtain confidential information.

Therefore, it is much easier to take advantage of the Internet and check your diploma by number online.

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Checking diploma authenticity online

How to check the authenticity of a diploma without having special powers, and is it possible to do this at all? It is possible if you know the document number. Many educational institutions today post applications on their Internet resources that allow you to complete this procedure.

To do this, you need to go to the website of the educational institution that issued the diploma, find a special service and enter the diploma number. If the document was actually issued, the owner’s data, information about the period of study and other information (for example, the name of the faculty) are usually available to the user.

If the diploma is fake, the service will not provide any data. Although in this case there is a possibility that the information simply did not enter the database or there were technical flaws in the application. However, in most cases, this means that the diploma was either not issued to the owner at all, or was issued, but in a not entirely legal way (for example, it was purchased).

How to verify the authenticity of a diploma if the educational institution does not have its own Internet site or does not have a database of graduates? In such a situation, you can use the federal register of information on documents on education, training and qualifications, posted on the official website of Rosobrnadzor.

When checking a diploma in this way, you cannot count on an instant result, since all information is provided after a certain amount of time and only after checking the validity of the request. True, avoiding refusal is quite simple - to do this, when creating an application, you just need to introduce yourself by the name of the diploma holder or a potential employer.

Before sending a request, you need to register, for which you will have to complete the following steps:

1. selecting an educational institution from the drop-down list (all educational institutions in the country that have state accreditation are available);
2. indication of the connection diagram to a secure corporate network (you also need to select from the drop-down list, it is better to choose the “no” option);
3. indicating your own data (last name, first name, patronymic and contact phone number); if the verification is carried out on a one-time basis, then you can enter the data of the diploma holder.

Registered users have access to the education document verification service and can check the authenticity of their diploma online.

How to check the authenticity of a diploma: alternative methods

What to do if the diploma number is unknown and its authenticity is in doubt? You can try to verify the fact that a person has the education he declared using alternative methods.

Almost all social networks operating today provide the opportunity to provide a lot of information about yourself, including information about your education. Of course, the mere indication of past training in a particular educational institution does not indicate the authenticity of the diploma, but indirect evidence of this can be found. For example, if the person you are interested in has graduates from the same university as friends.

Information about the educational institution

Any student, even a former student, is well aware of his alma mater and can tell about the teachers, the teaching order, the location of classrooms, educational buildings, etc. Therefore, it makes sense to obtain such information in order to then compare it with what a citizen reports about himself, raising doubts about the reliability of the education information provided by him.

Today, almost everyone dreams of financial well-being and a life of abundance. However, without a well-paid and stable job, such a goal is very difficult to achieve. Again, to get a warm place, you need to at least have a higher education. But not all young people bother with five years of university study. They don’t understand why they should go to lectures and take exams when they can buy the coveted certificate in the transition, and then present it at the request of a potential boss.

Labor market situation

Unfortunately, the number of such would-be specialists in our country is not decreasing. In this regard, an increasing number of employers have begun to take a closer look at the document on higher education that the applicant palms off on them. But few people know how to verify the authenticity of a diploma.

This issue becomes especially relevant when it comes to hiring an employee for high positions, where, in principle, it is impossible to do without specialized education. Unfortunately, in pursuit of big money, the lion's share of applicants resort to outright deception, providing HR officers with fake certificates. Of course, the recommendations below on how to check the authenticity of a diploma will be very useful for them.

How to counterfeit

Unscrupulous individuals buy false documents and inserts from equally unscrupulous employees of academies, universities and employees of the printing houses that produce them. Signatures and seals are easily forged, and information is entered that is deliberately false. Moreover, in some cases, all this is done on fake paper. However, it is not particularly difficult for experienced specialists to recognize the above fake, although there are exceptions to the rules. One way or another, every employer will be interested in knowing how to verify the authenticity of a diploma.

Procedure

Currently, document inspections are carried out, as a rule, on applicants for positions in internal affairs bodies (police, prosecutor's office), as well as on those who want to work in the space and military industries.

However, this does not mean at all that the director of a bakery does not have the right to make sure that his subordinates have real diplomas. Are diplomas actually checked for authenticity? One way or another, it is up to the employer to check or not check. If he has time and wants to get to the bottom of the truth at any cost, then the likelihood of an inspection is quite high. However, when initiating the above procedure, you should remember some nuances.

So, how can a manager check the authenticity of a diploma?

Official request

The boss can address the request to the university that issued the document to his potential employee. However, he must obtain written permission for this from the subordinate himself, since in Russia personal data cannot be the property of third parties.

In addition, the employer's request must be authorized by the relevant government authorities. Moreover, he must present serious arguments to justify the verification. As a rule, the justification is most often the low qualifications of the employee. To be fair, it should be said that university office workers often react very sluggishly to the above written requests from employers; they are simply too lazy to go to the archives and “raise cases,” making the excuse that the requested information cannot be disclosed by law.

Thus, checking the authenticity of a diploma is not such an easy task. Bureaucratic red tape can last up to six months, so some employers subsequently abandon this idea for fear of spending too much time, and, as you know, for every businessman it is money.

However, the boss can take an easier path: send the diploma holder directly to the university.

In other words, the subordinate himself goes to the university and brings an archival certificate from there. However, here’s the problem: today both a diploma and a certificate are easy to buy, so in this sense the employer is not protected in any way.

Social media

To solve the problem in question, you can do the following: try to find the owner’s profile on social networks. Today, every reputable university has created online communities of students and alumni. Even if your subordinate is not a member of social networks, you can always find his fellow students-friends who will be able to tell a lot of new and interesting things about their friend. Of course, this is not the most effective way to verify the authenticity of a document on higher education, but it is possible to find out whether this or that person really studied at an academy or university.

Of course, it is not always possible to verify the authenticity of a diploma. In Ukraine, by the way, this problem is quite acute. There are plenty of fake documents on higher education in the neighboring country.

Diplomas can be verified there on the Internet portal of the Ministry of Education by entering contact information.

Naked eye

How else can you verify the authenticity of a diploma? It wouldn’t hurt to act as an expert yourself.

First of all, pay attention to the quality of the paper, which should belong to the State Sign category, have a durable structure and exude a subtle smell of cellulose. Look carefully at the series and number of the document, run your finger over them: if after this some numbers are erased, then this is an obvious fake. Proof of the originality of the diploma is the presence of watermarks, which are very difficult to fake. Pay attention to how the document is filled out: in a real diploma, entries are made with high-quality matte paint.

By number

There is another way to check. Each diploma has an identification element in the form of a number. Naturally, all such codes of real university graduation documents issued are recorded in the register of the Russian Ministry of Education. To verify the authenticity of a diploma by number, you need to initiate a request on behalf of the university that issued the document.

Again, we should not forget that federal officials can provide information of interest only with the written consent of the employee and permission from law enforcement agencies.

Today there are Internet services where, using a number, you can find out the authenticity of a document. However, using them is fraught with errors, since they do not provide 100% reliable information.

Conclusion

It should be recognized that the number of false documents on higher education is steadily growing every day. That is why officials should focus on this problem and create in the near future an impressive database of authentic diplomas that were issued to university graduates.

It is no secret that one of the most popular fraudulent schemes is the sale of a fake higher education diploma. Outwardly, it may not differ in any way from the real thing, so it is extremely important to know how to protect yourself from such deception. Let us consider in detail how you can check the authenticity of a diploma, what to look for during the verification and what you should be wary of in such a document.

○ What is the Unified Register of Diplomas?

In 2013, it was decided to create a unified database of documents on completion of secondary and higher education, which can be used to verify the authenticity of any diploma or certificate. To implement this program, back in 2009, the official website of the Federal Service for Supervision of Education and Science began collecting information about all documents indicating the completion of any stage of training:

• Diplomas of secondary and higher education.
• Documentation of the award of an academic degree or scientific title.
• Certificates of passing the Unified State Exam.

Thus, the most extensive database of citizens’ education documents began to be formed, making it possible to verify their authenticity.

Work to fill the database is carried out daily, the lower limit of the information collection period is 1960, the upper limit has not been established.

○ Regulation of the activities of the Unified Register of Diplomas.

This register was created as part of the project activities of Rospotrebnadzor and is supervised by it. Educational institutions send information about issued documents (diplomas, certificates), which serve to further fill the database.

The maintenance of the register is regulated by the Federal Law “On Education in the Russian Federation” dated December 29, 2012 No. 273-FZ.

To ensure that information about documents on education and (or) qualifications, documents on training issued by organizations engaged in educational activities is taken into account, information about such documents is entered into the federal information system "Federal Register of Information on Documents on Education and (or) Qualifications, documents on training", the formation and maintenance of which is organized by the federal executive body exercising the functions of control and supervision in the field of education. Federal state bodies and executive authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation that carry out public administration in the field of education, local government bodies that carry out management in the field of education, organizations that carry out educational activities are represented to the federal executive body that carries out the functions of control and supervision in the field of education , information about issued documents on education and (or) qualifications, documents on training by entering this information into the federal information system "Federal Register of Information on Documents on Education and (or) Qualifications, Documents on Training".
(Clause 9, Article 98 No. 273-FZ).

In accordance with paragraph 10 of Art. 98, the list of information required to be entered into the database, as well as the procedure and form for maintaining it, is established by the Government of the Russian Federation.

○ How to check the authenticity of a diploma in the registry?

You can check your education document online without leaving your home.

✔ Step-by-step instructions for checking your diploma.

To do this, you need to follow the following algorithm of actions:

1. Go to the official website of Rospotrebnadzor.
2. Find the FRDO section - Federal Register of State Documents on Education, Academic Degrees and Academic Titles.
3. Click on the “Check document information” button.
4. Enter the required information in the appropriate fields and click on the check button.

In this section you can also familiarize yourself with the latest developments in current legislation and frequently asked questions.

✔ What data is needed to find information?

The required information will be indicated in the appropriate lines of the form. You will need an introduction:

• Level of education (secondary or higher).
• Names of the institution and its code according to the All-Russian Classifier.
• Full name of the document owner.
• State series and number of the form being checked.
• Dates of issue.

All this information can be found on the document being checked.

✔ Extended diploma verification.

In addition to the required information, you can add additional information to the database by checking through an advanced search. In this case you must also specify:

• Title of the document (certificate, diploma).
• Status (original, duplicate or lost).
• Registration number of the document (it can be found immediately under the inscription “Diploma)”.
• Graduate qualification (bachelor, specialist, master).
• Specialty (exactly as indicated in the document).
• Year of completion of training.

Advanced search is optional but recommended. This increases the likelihood of finding the information you need and makes the search process easier.

✔ Test results.

The verification procedure is fully automated and the system provides a quick result (positive) provided that the correct data is entered. Information is updated around the clock and entered no later than 2 months after the document is issued.

Only an educational institution can make additions; individuals can do this only by sending an official application to Rospotrebnadzor (for example, if you find an error in the database regarding your diploma).

If the result is negative, this does not mean that the document is fake. Perhaps the information about him has not yet been entered into the database, or there was some inaccuracy in the process of providing information.

Unfortunately, it is not difficult to acquire counterfeit documents of any complexity, so the question of the authenticity of the information provided is always relevant. To get a high-paying job, they falsify educational documents, especially higher education. The opportunity to check the fact of receipt of a diploma, including by its number, is provided through special information sites on the Internet. Let's analyze this and other methods of verifying the authenticity of documents on higher and special education below.

Methods for checking educational documents for authenticity

When hiring a new employee for a vacancy that requires special knowledge and skills, the employer will necessarily require information about the availability of appropriate education. A mandatory condition for employment in government agencies is to verify the authenticity of all documents. There are several completely legal and easily accessible ways to establish the authenticity of an education diploma, both with and without the consent of the diploma holder.

Among the main ways to verify the authenticity of a diploma, as a state form, are:

• external compliance with all established standards;
• requesting confirmation of the issuance of the relevant diploma from the educational institution that issued it;
• authentication in a special Rosobrnadzor database, accessed via the Internet.

There are other ways to obtain confirmation of completion of training at a specific educational institution and obtain a diploma or certificate of education. Alternative authentication methods include, for example, social networks that contain information about universities and study dates. In this case, you should remember that in the profile of social networks, all information regarding training is entered by the account owner independently, therefore, this method is not reliable.

A detailed questioning of the diploma holder about the educational institution and teachers will allow, after clarification, to draw a conclusion about the completion of training. This method is relevant if little time has passed since graduation.

Verifying the authenticity of a diploma by external features

All education diplomas, like other state documents, have a certain degree of protection and distinctive features. After analyzing the external characteristics, you can make a preliminary conclusion about its authenticity or counterfeit.

The original authentic diploma must have the following features:

• the presence of watermarks containing the abbreviation “RF”;
• when exposed to ultraviolet light, the coat of arms of Russia should appear, on either side of which there are the merging inscriptions “Russia” and “Diploma”, and you can also find peculiar threads across the entire surface;
• Using a magnifying glass, you can read the words written in 0.5 mm font to the right of the inscription “Diploma”. and making up the inscription “Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation”.

Attention! When photocopying a genuine diploma of education, the inscription “Copy” will appear on the copy, which is not visible to the naked eye on the form itself.

At the same time, the presence of all the above security elements is not proof of the authenticity of the diploma, but only indicates that the form is original. In practice, there are cases of large-scale theft of blank diploma forms from educational institutions. Despite the fact that in such cases, educational institutions are required to post information about the invalidation of such forms, many employers do not pay attention to this.

Checking your diploma for authenticity via the Internet

All information about obtaining an education, any qualification or training in accordance with the Federal Law dated December 29, 2012 No. 247-FZ and Government Decree No. 729 dated August 26, 20133 is entered into a specially created federal register. The main purpose of maintaining such a register is to suppress the activities of the market for fake diplomas and other government educational documents, as well as to consolidate information about all previously issued diplomas.

Access to this database for checking diplomas is open to everyone; there is no need to register or gain access through specialized bodies. When checking authenticity, you only need to indicate the required information, marked with a red asterisk and contained in the diploma itself:

If the required data does not allow you to find the required document, then you should use the advanced search, which involves additionally entering the name of the document, its registration number, as well as the assigned qualifications and specialty.

After moving the unlock slider, information about the availability of a diploma with the specified parameters in the database should appear.

Attention! The Rosobrnadzor database is at the stage of developing and entering all information about issued diplomas. The absence of data corresponding to the request is not evidence of document forgery.

If information is missing, you can send a request on the website to enter information about the issued diploma; registration is required for this. Project specialists will clarify the information at the specified university and, after confirmation, add the information to the register.

In addition to the federal register containing information about documents on higher education, you can also check the authenticity of a diploma on the website of the educational organization that issued it. The websites of large universities in the country contain special applications that allow you to establish the authenticity of diplomas issued to their graduates.

In conclusion, we note that the surest way to establish the authenticity of educational documents is to send a request to the institution that issued it. Although any person can make such a request, the university administration is not obliged to respond to a request received from third parties. Therefore, if there are reasons to suspect that the documents provided are forged, the employer may impose on the employee the obligation to provide a certificate from an educational institution confirming the fact that a particular education document was issued.

Federal Register of Diplomas: video