The business of fake ID cards is booming nowadays, and it’s much larger than what most people or even the law enforcement agencies assume. Some of you may not aware of this fact as you never needed to use one, or many of you probably had taken advantage and bought one to enter a bar when you were underaged, but still has no idea of the massive size of this business. An insider who is actively involved in this business of producing fake ID cards and selling them told our reporter that an estimated few million dollars are changing hands every month in this business in the USA alone, so one can hardly assume how big this business can be if we consider the global scenario.
Fake ID: how it works, and how it can affect you too
Nowadays, fake id has become a matter of concern due to various reasons. Many cybercriminals are using counterfeit ids to obtain loans, credit cards, open bank accounts in fake names, buy vehicles, get a mortgage, mobile sim, and what not! Most of the time, fake ids are being used for underage drinking, which may not seem a huge deal as those cards are being made in the name of fake or non-existent people. But when the criminals make fraudulent ids to impersonate other people, in short, when they do identity theft, that becomes a great deal – especially for the person whose identity got stolen. Identity theft is organized crime, those who make fake IDs are directly connected to the cybercriminals who steal people’s personal information through multiple means. Personal information like date of birth, mother’s maiden name, address, etc. are very sensitive, and can be used to create forged documents like passports, driving license, utility bill, payslip, etc. Once they make such documents, they can easily apply for a loan in a bank, can open a new checking account to launder ill-gotten money or even fund terrorist activities. Many times, they use such IDs and documents to take over a person’s existing bank account and steal all the money. They also do apply for credit cards, and mostly they successfully get approved with fake documents. Once those criminals get the card in their hands, they quickly max out the card’s limit by purchasing valuable and resaleable things and move on to their next target. Fake IDs are being used to get tax refunds, government benefits, to fund expensive cosmetic surgeries in some other person’s name. Unfortunately, it’s a very rare case when these criminals get caught just because too many things are involved in a single crime, and cybercriminals are smart enough to cover their tracks by using modern technologies, such as proxy IP, VPN, tor, etc.
Fake ID: a global threat
The most serious use of fake IDs is terrorist activities, where the lives of hundreds and thousands of people are involved. Terrorists often obtain phony ids, like driving license and passport, to cross borders. Though extensive details of most of the known terrorists are in databases of governments all over the world and passing through the security check of an airport is highly unlikely for them, still, there’s no shortage of new recruits in terror organizations, and use of fake IDs can be considered a grave threat for the mankind.