Turkish prosecutors have launched a wide-ranging investigation into an alleged forgery network accused of exploiting the country’s digital identity infrastructure to falsify university diplomas, alter academic records, and manipulate state exam results. The scandal has implicated more than 200 individuals—including a descendant of the Ottoman Sultan.

According to the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, the suspects gained unauthorized access to government and university systems by fraudulently obtaining electronic signatures—digital credentials widely used in Turkey to authorize official documents. Prosecutors allege that e-signatures belonging to senior officials at Gazi University and the Ministry of Education were used to insert falsified records into national education databases.

Prosecutors allege that forged e-signatures from employees at 14 institutions—including the Higher Education Council (YÖK) and the Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK)—were used to create fake academic credentials. The suspects reportedly exploited vulnerabilities in two digital certificate providers, TÜRKTRUST and E-İMZATR, to generate fraudulent e-signatures.

The forged documents include fake diplomas, altered academic transcripts, and modified drivers license test results. In some cases, failed test scores were changed to passing grades, enabling individuals to obtain driver’s licenses or academic credentials, who otherwise would not have qualified.

Among those named in the investigation is Abdülhamit Kayıhan Osmanoğlu, a descendant of 19th-century Ottoman Sultan Abdulhamid II. Official records listed Osmanoğlu as a graduate of İnönü University’s History Department, though prosecutors found no evidence of his enrollment or graduation. His case is being investigated separately, but may be merged with the broader indictment if further evidence is obtained.

An indictment finalized in May names 134 suspects, 16 of whom are currently in custody. The charges include forgery of official documents, unauthorized access to information systems, misuse of personal data, and violations of national testing regulations. If convicted, the accused........

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