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     true lies

This page considers the business of blurring or inventing identities: people who will sell you a fake identity document or merely furnish an alibi on a commercial basis.

It covers -

• introduction
• the real McCoy?
• official paper, unofficial words
• 'novelty' vendors
• marriage by net?

     introduction

Manufacture of fake travel documents, passports, letters of authorisation and other identity documents was undertaken last century - the 'age of paper' by governments to facilitate espionage, covert action or sabotage during periods of military conflict and undercover surveillance by police or other official investigators. It is also apparent in witness protection schemes.

'Official forgery' and counterfeiting is highlighted elsewhere on this site, in accounts of particular incidents such as the 1943 UK "Man Who Never Was' exploit (aka Operation Mincemeat) and in histories of intelligence agencies such as the CIA.

What of the private 'true lies' business?

Readers of this site periodically ask whether organised crime is retailing identity documents; one desperate or particularly ingenuous contact sought advice about where to buy a fake passport and drivers' licence.

It is clear that fake identity documents are available in black markets and that there are gray markets for some documents. Information about the shape of those markets (who is involved, what sums are involved, the number of documents and the efficiency of responses) is problematical.

One reason is that many offences may not be detected. Others are merely not publicised. As an illegal industry - like narcotics - participants do not furnish comprehensive data about production, distribution and consumption. It is thus not possible to benchmark turnover and profit margins.

A final reason is that public/private sector organisations are reticent about highlighting vulnerabilities (although on occasion apparently hyping particular solutions such as the Australia Card) and so much information is anecdotal.

Overall we can draw several conclusions, discussed in more detail below -

• one way to gain a new identity remains purchase of legitimate documents, particularly from states such as Papua New Guinea with systemic governance failures. There is no need for example to labour over faking watermarks and seals if you can simply bribe a consular official to issue a passport in the name of your choice or you can buy 20 blank passports
• another way is to source documents from a cottage industry of 'photoshop kids' - people who will cook up identity documents of varying persuasiveness on a bespoke basis. Incidents highlighted in the discussion of forgery elsewhere on this site include discovery that individuals were creating fake licences and other documents using personal computers and scanners: insufficient for international travel but enough to 'breed' other documents
• some people are engaging in Walter Mitty fantasies (or defrauding banks, other institutions and employers) by buying 'novelty' documents from commercial vendors, some of whom provide alibis for social interactions that do not involve the police.

     the real McCoy?

US bandit Willie Sutton, when asked why he robbed banks, responded "that's where the money is!". Some consumers have displayed a similar acuity, buying identity documents in gray or black markets.

Some people have observed formalities and officially purchased passports and other papers from indigent states in the Pacific, Caribbean or Africa. A few hundred thousand dollars (or less, depending on the desperation of the president of the day or ruling family) and you can become a citizen of the particular state with no questions about where your loot came from or inconsistencies in the details on the new bit of paper. You don't even have to live on the atoll or among the glittering nightlife of Kigali, although regime change means that citizenship may be revoked if new payments are not forthcoming.

Intermediaries for such 'rebirthing' services advertise through legal/accounting specialists, in mainstream journals such as Forbes and enthusiast publications such as Soldier of Fortune.

The number of purchases per year, their value and the incidence of revocations is not clear. One reason is that most regimes do not distinguish between gifts of citizenship to 'favoured investors' and sale to crooks. Another reason is that the proceeds of sale may be absorbed by the ruling kleptocrat rather than trickling down to the national exchequer, with transparency revealing that the autocrat is using the passport business as a personal ATM.

     official paper, unofficial words?

Some people without those resources and imagination (or who merely need a new/additional identity for scams within their own country) have relied on illicit issue of documents by corrupt officials. Improper issue of documents such as drivers licences, and their use, is typically an offence.

Others have purchased blank forms from officials or from people who have stolen those documents from government offices, briefcases, postal bags or other locations. Elsewhere for example this site notes loss of the PNG passports database and numerous blanks (alleged by some to be an 'inside job') and disappearance of several thousand blank French passports, driver identification documents and other forms.

     novelty vendors

In 2006 the Law Pages of the London Times profiled fakealibi.co.uk, bizarrely promoted as "the World's Only Legitimate Alibi Service" and "the only website that gives you assistance, in whatever you are doing" ...

With the pressures of modern life many of us have occasion to stray from our long term partners and dally with a brief sexual or emotional relationship with a third party, this is often a short term affair, inconsequential to our long term plans and relationships, but with modern communications, and media, it has become increasingly difficult to be able to carry on such a temporary dalliance, without risk of detection, Any chance of such a relationship becoming public knowledge in any way whatsoever can put an incredible strain on all parties concerned.

Family life, the home, business and children's welfare can all be put on the line for what may indeed have been a totally inconsequential short term flurry of sexual or emotional feelings.

We have been established to provide a way out of this situation, we offer a Service which can help to protect your loved ones from undue anxiety, and help to ensure the stability of a long term relationship and financial security, by offering secure and professional handling of "Alibi's" for you.

Have you ever dreamed of living an alternative, secret life? The majority of our agents are normal people living ordinary lives, some are bankers, teachers even TV presenters - but when they receive the call from us - they know an exciting adventure is about to begin.

Although most of our agents work part time and whenever the need arises for their help they always free their time for us, but some are now working full time - they are our "Special Agents"

As of two months ago we now have a structure of command for our organisation ... F.A Commander - Joint Commander - Diamond Agent - Special Agent- Secret Agent - Agent - Trainee/Administration

The people who come to us are already having affairs. In some cases we are helping to save marriages. People having affairs are often not doing so because they want to destroy everything but because of any number of other reasons. They might be frustrated because of the long-term illness of their spouse or lonely because their partner is always away. They want to preserve their marriages and there might be children involved. People could get hurt if everything came out, and by helping to conceal the affair or fling we are actually assisting the stability of family life.

Uh huh.

Associate ReplicaDocs offers "novelty documents" that look the same as legitimate UK bank statements, utility bills, payslips and drivers licenses. A single bank statement, utility bill and payslip costs £79.99. "Novelty" doesn't come cheap: a "fully editable" template for multiple documents costs £499.

The site cautions that

You must observe and comply with all applicable regulations and legislation. ... You agree in ordering any novelty documents from us, that without exception they are not to be used for financial gain, fraud, deception or any other criminal activity.

The wording is similar to that from degree mills. The documents are not disfigured with inconvenient warnings such as 'fake'. We are looking forward to action by one of the major UK financial institutions for trademark infringement, as -

• the 'novelty' items feature the logos and names of real institutions rather than fictitious entities such as the Bank of Bongo-Bongo in a virtual state supposedly based on far-distant asteroids
• those institutions are often the victims of financial scams involving use of fake identity documents.

Short-lived competitor fakeutilitys.com (archived here) offered a "Fake UK Photo Card Driving Licence" claimed to be "100% accurate to the originals ... guaranteed to be identical in everyway to the real issue 'dvla' licences" for a mere £300, birth certificats, insurance forms, bank statements and education certificates.

Theidshop.com boasts that

We can replicate most any passport upon request and proper pricing. Our Fake Passports are of the highest quality and look very near identical to an official one. In addition we can work on a one-on-one basic with you to create a completely custom passport job. Use our fake passports in conjunction with our fake ID's for a complete "New Identity" Package. Upon request we can create a complete identity solution. This can include a fake novelty id, fake passport and several other different forms of identification such as credit cards, checkbooks, utility bills and fake corporate documents if needed. Let us stress that creating our custom packages are only for individuals that are serious about creating complete turn key identify [sic] packages.

Other vendors such as doctorsnotestore.com have marketed 'novelty' medical certificates, available online for people prepared to pay $40 or upwards for a 'sick note'.

One Australian doctor and ethicist warned that novelty medical certificate sites are "clearly inciting and abetting fraud", noting that medical practitioners would not divulge information about a patient's health but could disclose whether a medical certificate had been issued.

Can purchasers of bogus documentation be sure that it won't be challenged? The answer is clearly no, given that some public/private sector employers check quite legitimate certificates.

     marriage by net?

Some offenders have gone a stage further, exploiting online proxy marriage services (example archived here) that enable people to gain a marriage certificate in a country such as Mexico even though neither party to the marriage is a national of that country or is present in the country. Participants, indeed not be present at the same place.

That has occasionally resulted in legal curiosities, such as claims during an Irish law suit in 2008 that a woman gained a Mexican proxy marriage without the knowledge of her partner and then solicited a mafia-style 'hit' on the new 'husband'. The would-be contract killer had reportedly advertised his services online and used the hire_hitman@yahoo.com email address!

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