The Pandemic of “Predatory” Rankings: Why Academic Integrity Fails the Stress Test

The article examines a crisis of academic integrity triggered by the emergence of a network of “predatory” (fake) websites mimicking the official Webometrics Ranking of World Universities (WUR). The author analyzes the origins of this phenomenon, linked to the temporary closure of the official portal and the migration of the Cybermetrics Lab’s data to new storage platforms. Three primary clone domains were identified that either falsify data or sell “position enhancement services” for a fee (up to €5,000 per month). The problem has escalated into an “information wildfire,” spreading across 29 countries. The highest number of cases involving the use of fraudulent data was recorded in Indonesia (50% of cases), Turkey, and Ukraine. The use of false rankings in official university reports and the media is classified as institutional fraud, misleading both prospective students and the state. It is emphasized that under new legislation (e.g., the 2026 Ukrainian Law “On Academic Integrity”), the publication of such data may lead to legal liability for university management. The author calls for the establishment of an international consortium of universities to support the official webometric audit and purge the digital space of fraudulent ranking systems, proposing a series of measures and a Comprehensive Program for Enhancing Integrity and Transparency in University Ranking Ecosystems.