Yahoo shareholder accuses CEO Scott Thompson of exaggerating academic credentials, calls for sacking

A Yahoo! shareholder has called on the embattled technology company to sack its recently appointed chief executive Scott Thompson for exaggerating his academic credentials, the New York Times reported.

Official Yahoo biographies and filings to the US Securities and Exchange Commission state that Thompson, who was appointed in January, has degrees in accounting and computer science, according to the Washington Post.

But the Associated Press reported that activist investor Dan Loeb, whose hedge fund ThirdPoint holds 5.8% of Yahoo’s shares, revealed Thursday that Thompson only has an accounting degree.

Yahoo today confirmed the “inadvertent error” in Thompson’s academic record and said it was investigating the matter, CNET reported.

But the company is standing behind its CEO. In a statement cited by CNNMoney, Yahoo said the mistake "in no way alters that fact that Mr Thompson is a highly qualified executive with a successful track record leading large consumer technology companies."

Thompson, the former president of eBay’s PayPal division, replaced acting CEO Tim Morse, who had taken the role after the September sacking of Carol Bartz.

Yahoo has been plagued by problems in recent years as it struggles to compete with its bigger and more popular rival Google.

Last month, Thompson announced Yahoo would lay off 2,000 employees – 14 percent of its workforce — as part of a broader effort to slim the company and make it more profitable.

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