One of Malaysia's first concrete government blockchain deployments is here — and it tackles a very real problem: fake degrees.
The Ministry of Education has unveiled e-Scroll, a blockchain-based system for issuing and verifying university degree certificates, built on the NEM blockchain. The system is a response to widespread degree fraud from online "diploma mills" that sell convincing but worthless certificates.
How it works
Certificate data is stored on-chain, and every printed certificate carries a QR code. An employer scanning the code can verify a graduate's degree in seconds — no phone calls to registrars, no waiting for confirmation letters.
The system was developed by a consortium of six public universities led by the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), with Universiti Utara Malaysia, UTM, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu and UiTM as founding members.
First graduates on-chain
On 10 November 2018, roughly 200 graduating PhD students at IIUM's convocation became the first recipients of blockchain-verified degrees in Malaysia. The launch drew international coverage — a reminder that practical, unglamorous use cases like credential verification are often where blockchain earns its keep.
The association sees e-Scroll as an encouraging template: a clear problem, a measurable saving in verification time, and a public institution willing to build. We hope more agencies follow.
References
- CoinDesk — "Malaysian Government, Universities Team to Put Degrees on a Blockchain" (9 Nov 2018)
- NEM Southeast Asia — implementation details
- Lowyat.NET — "Ministry Of Education Will Verify e-Scrolls Using Blockchain Technology"
- OpenGov Asia — "Malaysia unveils blockchain-based certificate verification" (27 Nov 2018)