An online seller has been indicted for allegedly forging academic certificates, the Taichung District Prosecutors’ Office said, adding that more than 60 percent of the buyers were military personnel.
A woman in Taichung, surnamed Chu (朱), allegedly sold fake academic certificates online through Shopee for NT$5,000 each from July 2024 to May last year, which she said looked “realistic,” the prosecutors said.
Chu allegedly downloaded graduation certificate templates and seals from several universities and then filled them in with buyers’ personal information, they said.
Photo: Taipei Times
Of Chu’s nine buyers, six were military personnel who bought college or high school diplomas, they added.
One of them allegedly bought a fake diploma from the Central Police University and gave it to military human resources personnel, who were unaware it was fake, raising concern about military personnel files’ accuracy, the prosecutors said.
Other buyers included a man surnamed Chang (張), who allegedly bought a doctorate diploma from National Taiwan University, and a man surnamed Chen (陳), who allegedly bought a master’s diploma from Feng Chia University and gave it to a major technology company, they said.
One buyer did not use their forged certificate, they added.
Police said the military personnel likely bought the fake certificates to meet requirements for promotions, bonuses or specialized departments.
Prosecutors at the end of last year directed the Investigation Bureau to seize Chu’s phone, blank certificates, seals, stamps and other evidence, as well as the forged certificates of the nine buyers.
All 10 defendants have been indicted on charges of forgery.
The prosecutors asked the court to impose suspended sentences or fines for the eight buyers who admitted to the offenses, surrendered their forged certificates and showed improved conduct.
Investigators warned that buyers of forged academic certificates could include members of fraud rings impersonating prosecutors or police.
Over the past few years, fraudsters impersonating criminal investigators, detectives or engineers have presented forged diplomas or employment certificates to gain their victims’ trust, they said.
They would use fake diplomas as props to help “prove” their identity, prosecutors said.
It is difficult for people to verify the documents’ authenticity, reinforcing fraudsters’ narratives, they added.
Illegal items have previously circulated through online platforms such as Shopee, including firearms sold under the guise of toy guns, police said.
People have also been suspected of using online platforms to sell drugs under the guise of other products, they said.
People might not realize the items they are buying are illegal, but could still break the law by purchasing them, police said.
If people come across items they suspect could be illegal, they can report them to the platform and notify police, they added.
Shopee said it has taken swift action in response to the case, removing the seller’s storefront and permanently suspending the account.
It added it has provided relevant information to prosecutors and police in accordance with regulations, and has since conducted a comprehensive review along with preventive measures.
The company also warned sellers against attempting to circumvent platform rules by listing prohibited items or evading inspections. Violators could face penalties up to permanent account suspension and may be referred to law enforcement authorities for further legal action, it added.
This article has been updated since it was first posted.
A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck off the coast of Yilan County at 8:39pm tonight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, with no immediate reports of damage or injuries. The epicenter was 38.7km east-northeast of Yilan County Hall at a focal depth of 98.3km, the CWA’s Seismological Center said. The quake’s maximum intensity, which gauges the actual physical effect of a seismic event, was a level 4 on Taiwan’s 7-tier intensity scale, the center said. That intensity level was recorded in Yilan County’s Nanao Township (南澳), Hsinchu County’s Guansi Township (關西), Nantou County’s Hehuanshan (合歡山) and Hualien County’s Yanliao (鹽寮). An intensity of 3 was
Instead of focusing solely on the threat of a full-scale military invasion, the US and its allies must prepare for a potential Chinese “quarantine” of Taiwan enforced through customs inspections, Stanford University Hoover fellow Eyck Freymann said in a Foreign Affairs article published on Wednesday. China could use various “gray zone” tactics in “reconfiguring the regional and ultimately the global economic order without a war,” said Freymann, who is also a nonresident research fellow at the US Naval War College. China might seize control of Taiwan’s links to the outside world by requiring all flights and ships entering or leaving Taiwan
The next minimum wage hike is expected to exceed NT$30,000, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday during an award ceremony honoring “model workers,” including migrant workers, at the Presidential Office ahead of Workers’ Day today. Lai said he wished to thank the awardees on behalf of the nation and extend his most sincere respect for their hard work, on which Taiwan’s prosperity has been built. Lai specifically thanked 10 migrant workers selected for the award, saying that although they left their home countries to further their own goals, their efforts have benefited Taiwan as well. The nation’s industrial sector and small businesses lay
Taiwan has activated backup communications for its northernmost territory, the remote and strategically located island of Dongyin (東引), after poor weather conditions apparently shifted the wreckage of a ship onto an undersea cable causing it to break. The vulnerability of undersea communication cables linking Taiwan with its outlying islands has been a persistent cause of concern for Taipei, whose government has on several occasions blamed Chinese ships for intentionally causing damage. Dongyin, home to about 1,500 people, sits in a strategic position at the top of the Taiwan Strait and the island has a heavy military presence. It does not have an
RSS