The Ministry of Higher Education explains the reasons for the suspension of the authentication of electronic certificates in PDF format

Port Sudan/The Citizen

The Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research has clarified that its recent decision to suspend the authentication and accreditation of electronic university certificates printed in PDF format comes within the framework of protecting the Sudanese university degree as a sovereign document and ensuring the future of graduates locally, regionally, and internationally.

The Ministry stressed that the decision does not represent a retreat from the digital transformation, as portrayed by some, but rather a regulatory step aimed at stopping what it described as formal digitization that relies on signature images or verification codes (QR codes) that are not technically secured and do not provide the minimum standards of digital security recognized globally.

The Ministry also warned against relying on QR codes associated with local university systems or decentralized servers, explaining that this method may lead to the loss of the possibility of verifying the certificate in the future, especially in the event of a failure or loss of local systems.

The statement stressed that the suspension of authentication in its current form aims to pave the way for the launch of a unified national centralized platform for the authentication of certificates, based on an encrypted digital signature and multi-layered smart verification codes, ensuring instant and reliable verification from anywhere in the world.

The Ministry concluded its statement by stressing that its decision was not born of the moment, but rather the result of an in-depth technical study of the risks associated with fragile signatures, announcing that a new phase of electronic authentication in its true sense will be launched according to a clear plan starting from January 2026, with its full readiness to share all information related to this transformation with the public.