International Journal of Science, Engineering and TechnologyAuthors: Soham Baban Kale, Nikhil Anil Khose, Vaibhav Uttam Kolekar, Vedant Vaibhav Kondejkar, Prof. Amol Jagtap
Abstract: Document verification has always been a manual, time-consuming task for institutions and companies alike. According to data released by India's Ministry of Education, close to one million students graduate every year and move on to either higher studies or employment. Each of them carries a set of academic records — mark sheets, certificates, diplomas — that need to be verified by receiving institutions or employers. The problem is that current verification systems are centralized, which opens them up to tampering, SQL injection, collusion attacks, and straightforward document forgery. There is no reliable mechanism in place that gives a third party instant confidence in a document's authenticity. This paper presents TrustEdu, a web-based digital document locker built on top of a custom blockchain. The system lets students upload their academic documents, get them verified by their institution, and then share a QR code or unique instrument ID with any third party — eliminating the need to carry physical documents altogether. Once a document clears institutional verification, its hash is stored on the blockchain, making any subsequent tampering immediately detectable. Smart contracts automate the verification logic, and the QR code serves as a tamper-evident link between the paper record and its blockchain entry. Results show that the system significantly reduces verification time while improving the integrity and trustworthiness of shared academic credentials.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.20392948
