May 2006 - In response to several recent incidents involving forged or “doctored” certification credentials, the National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators (NCCCO) has begun a program aimed at familiarizing employers with the principal details of the CCO certification card. Central to this effort is the development of a pictorial “CCO Certification Card Fact Sheet” identifying the key features of the CCO certification card.
“It’s a trickle not a flood at this point,” said NCCCO Executive Director, Graham Brent. “But we don’t want this to get out of hand and we believe that education of those reviewing the CCO credential is an effective means of ensuring it does not.”
The Fact Sheet includes enlarged views of both the front and back of the CCO certification card, and an explanation of the various types of certification now available from NCCCO, along with their three-letter identification codes.
Brent warns employers not to accept photocopies of cards, nor any card that appears to have been tampered with. “The CCO certification card is, in fact, rather difficult to forge,” Brent said, “since the individual’s photograph along with the certification categories and expiration date are all heat-sealed into the plastic card when it is first issued.”
However, Brent said employers should be particularly vigilant about certification category codes that appear to have been added after the card was printed, or any lettering that appears in a different typeface to the rest of the card.
“Score report letters are also inadequate by themselves,” says Brent, “since they only attest to an individual’s performance on either the written or practical test, and not as to whether he or she is certified.” And unlike certification cards, there is no picture I.D. on a score report letter to verify identity.
Score letters were also easier to forge or tamper with, Brent added, noting that several cases had come to light where scores had been “adjusted” by the candidate to appear he had performed better than, in fact, he had.
Copies of the CCO Certification Card Fact Sheet can be obtained via email from Tara Whittington, Assistant Program Coordinator, at twhittington@nccco.org