Essay mill website ‘misled’ students

♦websites selling essays must warn students that they face being punished by their universities for submitting fake work, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has ruled.

The website of UK Essays misled customers by failing to point out the risks associated with submitting purchased essays, the watchdog said.

The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA), whose complaint prompted the investigation, described it as a landmark decision.

Ian Kimber, the QAA’S director of academic standards, said: “This landmark ruling ... is the first successful challenge to their claims of legitimacy, exposing their cynical use of anti-plagiarism disclaimers and exploitative media referencing.”