> Employers rarely verify if the claimed higher education/degree on a resume is real,
As mentioned, this is true only in places where you need a degree to make a check. There is indeed credential inflation where degrees are required just because they can ask and serves as a proof that
a person will be able to answer the phone.
Everyone in a reasonably advanced business looks at the granting institution and pretty much knows what to expect from there and what to ask during interview. Many small/medium firms tend to hire from a small set of institutions. I was interviewed at a place where 50% were PhDs from a top-five institution, and they were joking warmly about lowering their standards. But they gave my presentation a fair hearing and after a year nobody mentioned my lowly pedigree.