Diploma Mills issue fake degrees and diplomas for fraudulent purposes, such as obtaining employment, promotions, raises, or bonuses on false pretenses.
There have been recent news stories about diploma mills and fake degrees. The Indiana Attorney General Steve Carter, through an agreed order from the LaPorte Circuit Court, halted two Michigan City businesses engaged in the sale of imitation high school and university diplomas via the Internet; a sheriff in Montana was caught providing a false high school diploma; and a news story surfaced that the Stanford Who's Who organization recently recognized a Reverand Dr. to their ranks who earned a Doctorate degree in Humane Behavior from Almeda University in 2003. You can purchase the same degree from Almeda for your dog, which people have done. Almeda is a popular Diploma Mill. Many people promote their Diploma Mill degrees at Linkedin. A recent search on Linkedin found someone identifying himself as involved in the security industry and a Chapter Chairman from ASIS and who mentions on his profile that he has a degree from Almeda.
How do you spot a Diploma Mill? One of the world's leading experts, if not the leading expert, on Diploma Mills, is Accredibase. They provide the world with extensive information and related links regarding this topic. See their site at www.accredibase.com.
Also, the Wisconsin Educational Approval Board has an excellent web page that includes a list of evaluation questions to help determine if an institution is a Mill; see http://eab.state.wi.us/resources/diplomamills.asp