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Description

When a company or organisation decides to “certify” something, they can manipulate that certification to do the least possible, while obtaining the most authority possible from it;
The rule of thumb is that we should consider any certification that doesn’t share its internal criteria fake or manipulated;

How It Works

First, certifications serve as standard manipulation. That is, the rule is to be “certified”. But they decide what actions are taken, and what criteria are taken into account, to “certify” something;
Then, they also serve as labeling manipulation. That is, the “Certified” or “Trusted” label itself confers authority and respect upon something, regardless of what “Certified” actually is;
And finally, they also serve as permission manipulation. That is, the “certified” or “trusted” labels serve as an excuse for the person to trust something;

Seaspiracy and MSC. The documentary “Seaspiracy” revealed how the MSC label was a lot less rigorous and trustworthy, with no verification of criteria in many cases, and conflicts of interest when verifying the criteria in other cases;
Greenwashing. A lot of brands include labels such as “Trusted” and “Certified”, to give the impression they are doing something for the environment, but the criteria are opaque in most cases;
Degrees. In many cases, obtaining a degree depends a lot on the university. Obtaining a Law degree from Duke University is probably very different from obtaining a Law degree from a bottom-ranked university. But still, someone can say they “have a Law degree”;