I only know the German initiatives of private persons actively searching for mistakes in citation. There are several tools for finding or measuring the grade of plagiarism. At my university the master and doctoral thesis are checked against Turnitin.
I can't rate the value of academic degrees in other countries than Germany. In Germany the doctoral degree can lead to a high reputation in public view, especially in the eyes of the elderly. One could hold a doctorate in "collecting stamps" and gain a prestige like one could be asked every question about our complex world.
Especially in the case of unpopular politicians (e.g. zu Guttenberg) their relatives (e.g. Veronica "Vroni" Saß) or economists (e.g Margarita Mathiopoulos), private initiatives work hard to find mistakes or unethical behavior in connection to their thesis, to undermine their public reputation.
I can imagine that in countries where personal attributes and charsima play a bigger role than overrated degrees, initiatives like Vroniplag are of less public interest.