Forgers sell fake internship certificates to college students online

Forgers are using the Internet to sell students fake stamps on the internship certificates many colleges require them to present, The Beijing News reported.

“Our business thrives starting from August. Most of the buyers are students,” one forger told The Beijing News.

Zhao Hui ( pseudonym), a student majoring in civil engi- neering was one such buyer.

Zhao told The Beijing News that he paid forgers for a certificate with a fake stamp as he was too busy studying for a postgraduate entrance exam to do an internship, explaining that the certificate is “obligatory, without it I won’t be able to graduate from college.”

Zhao spent 70 yuan ($ 10) on a forged internship certifi- cate which said he had worked at a construction firm.

The stamps are either made with a computer or are carved by hand.

The Global Times found dozens of QQ messenger groups which claimed to provide this service, but a search for “intern certificate” turned up no stores on shopping platform Taobao as of press time.

Certain sellers even boast 24- hour service. They write a hotline, often their own home phone number, on the certificate in case colleges decide to check if the student truly worked where they claimed to have.

Wang Yongjie, a Beijingbased lawyer, told The Beijing News that people who fake stamps could face up to 3 years behind bars.

All companies in China need official stamps, which are registered with local police and can only be manufactured by officially- chosen suppliers.