Ethical issues aside (and I've never done any of this) - who checks your education? I've never had anyone ask for transcripts, and I've never seen a database of what they're supposed to look like. You could send in anything with a watermark-y looking thing and 99% of people would take it.
Many employers, especially those with a dedicated HR department, call the stated university verify degrees. This is especially true if a security clearance/background check is an employment requirement. I believe a Yahoo exec got caught by this last year.
> I've never had anyone ask for transcripts, and I've never seen a database of what they're supposed to look like.
As yukon already explained, they don't ask you for your transcript. Instead, either the company's HR department or the background check company they hired just goes direct to the source. It's not an instant process either. Typically they complete everything several months after you're hired.
