More than 1,000 students from Guangzhou universities rallied at the South China Agriculture University on Saturday to protest against pyramid selling, the Guangzhou Daily reported Sunday.

The rally was co-sponsored by the provincial administration for commerce and industry and the education department, reported Shenzhen Daily.

Many students at other universities held protest activities on their own campuses.

"As far as I know, none of my friends have ever been involved in the illegal practice. But anyway, we should stay alert," said Zhao Ying, a student from South China Normal University.

The campaign was launched in the wake of a pyramid selling case which cheated more than 2,000 college students from all over the country.

The case was solved this March with the help of three students, who were rewarded by the Ministry of Public Security on Saturday, the paper said.

On of the students, surnamed Xu, set up a plan to expose the pyramid selling ring in southwestern Chongqing after he was coerced into the ring in February. Xu and two friends recorded the information of other cheated students during "training lectures" organized by the leading suspects.

It was this information that helped police break up the ring and send the cheated students home, the paper said.

Source: Xinhua