re: "If you have a doctorate"...all post-grad dissertations (masters, doctoral) are sent in printed form to the National Library in Ottawa, where anyone can search the person's name and see the title of the dissertation, and get a brief bio of the graduate. I was amazed when I searched my last name to discover not only my dissertation but my aunt's Master's thesis from the 1930's.

This is a handy quick way to check a person's credentials. As has been said ad nauseam, the Web is amazing.