Combatting qualification fraud

What is emerging in several recent high-profile cases is a worrying increase in qualification fraud at more senior levels, where qualifications such as doctorates, degrees and other higher credentials are now being falsified.

Prominent individuals accused of CV fraud have included senior member of the African National Congress and former Member of Parliament, Pallo Jordan, former SABC chairwoman Ellen Tshabalala, South Africa's ambassador to Japan, Mohau Pheko and, more recently, CEO of Dube Tradeport in KwaZulu-Natal, Saxen van Coller.

It appears that a practice once associated with entry-level workers has now risen to be a 'white collar' practice that is harder to identify due to the calibre of the individuals in question.

The company's reputation

Financial loss and expensive legal action are just some of the consequences faced by companies that do not make the necessary verification checks when employing people. The biggest loss, however, is the dent in the company's reputation, resulting in questionable integrity and loss of credibility that stays with the company long after the individual in question has been shown the door.

"Although companies acknowledge the high risk attached to hiring individuals without verifying their credentials there is still a high volume of incidents taking place," said Rudi Kruger from LexisNexis Risk Management.

He added: "There is a number of reasons why companies are still not scrutinising qualifications presented to them before they employ an individual. One of these is the perception that there is a lot of red tape involved in this process. In most cases, qualification verification is left as the final step in the process due to the cost per candidate associated with verification, and well after interviews, reference checks and initial discussions have taken place.

"When companies have been through the long process and are at a stage where they feel as if they have found the right candidate in terms of cultural fit, skill set and experience, they look at verification as adding an unnecessary extra step in the process," Kruger said.

"This perception, however, could not be further from the truth as there are numerous verification facilities available to take care of all the necessary requirements and bring back factual and accurate information to you within a reasonable time frame," he added.

An example of such solutions is RefCheck Advanced, a leading pre-employment and background screening solution that has become an essential tool in human resource management and staff recruitment.

RefCheck can verify a wide range of personal information, including the identity of the candidate, information held by credit bureaux, criminal records, drivers' licences, global academic qualifications and professional association memberships. RefCheck can also provide a valuable employee due diligence and audit tool.

RefCheck allows 24/7 access that is password and user name restricted. Uses can determine which information they require verification of for each candidate, dependent on position or seniority. RefCheck carries no registration cost or monthly subscription fee, with users being charged only for usage via a monthly statement.

So, how does a business ensure that seemingly legitimate qualifications are indeed the real deal? For their own peace of mind many businesses around the world are now turning to managed services to verify all candidates. RefCheck currently services thousands of clients via an online consent-driven platform.