South African universities have announced that they will begin issuing blockchain-based certificates to students who graduate from their institutions.Administrators at universities argued that a blockchain-based certificate system will prevent fraud and stop the production of fake documents.
QR Code for Every Certificate
According to a report, the University of Johannesburg (UJ) has stated that it will start issuing blockchain-based certificates for its graduates this year. The report states that each qualification document issued from the university will include a QR code, which can be used to verify its authenticity.
The university adopted the blockchain-based certification system, as explained in the Mybroadband report. This is to combat fraud and counterfeiting of UJ-issued certificates.
Tinus van Zyl is the university’s senior administrator of central academic administration. He is quoted in this report as explaining why the blockchain-based system was a better option than the digital certificate system that UJ introduced a while back. Van Zyl stated that university graduates have been using the digital certificates system to digitally access and share their certificates with potential employers.
Certificates verified by a third party
The blockchain-based system allows prospective employers and third party to verify the certificate of a graduate.
Van Zyl stated that the public can now validate the UJ graduate’s qualifications without needing to contact the university or go through verification agencies. They simply scan the QR code on the certificate. And, best of all, it is free.
Kinta Burger, another UJ employee is mentioned in the report, suggesting that UJ’s implementation of the blockchain-based certification system will protect its reputation and the integrity of the certificates it issues.