Forgers of identity documents are becoming more creative

13 september 2021

Actual figures show that the number of people arrested for committing identity fraud is rising. The total amount of found false identity documents was 169.592 in 2015 and is growing fast. 

The rise in ID theft

2015: 169,592
2016: 172,918
2017: 174,523
2018: 189,108
2019: 223,163

Why identity fraud?

A large part of the fraudsters consists of refugees who are travelling from Greece to Europe and UK. Besides, there is a group of serious criminals and terrorists who try to reach the boarder with a false identity document.  

The false passports are becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish from the genuine documents, but the employees of The border patrol are constantly trained to distinguish the identity documents.    

 

Methods of Forgery

The most common method for forging an identity document is to modify the personal details. Another way in which fraudsters forge is by reproducing the entire document.  

Fraudsters are also becoming more creative with their methods. They use a valid identity document of another person who resembles to the person in question. By using this method all security features are correct by a validation. The border patrol tries to counter this method by looking at facial features such as scars and moles. 

 

Verification of the identity document and the identity of a person

The figures show that identity fraud is a major problem in the travel industry. The methods which are mentioned before are also being used in other sectors. People with bad intentions often use a false identity to work in the United Kingdom for example.  

Do you need to verify identity documents regularly and are you unable to determine the authenticity with certainty? DataChecker offers the possibility to verify the identity document and the identity of a person remotly, any time and anywhere.