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Official documents are required for important activities such as travelling to other countries, driving and opening a bank account. Depending on the country, you even need to provide valid identification for things such as buying a SIM card. Due to government regulations, Know Your Customer (KYC) policies have become stringent in recent years and mandatory in most cases. As a result, there is a thriving market for fake identification documents.
It is understood that the people providing fake documents are committing a crime, ergo, anyone availing their services should know that they are involved in illegal activities. Using fake documents is an invitation for serious jail time. In legal terms, the crime is called ‘Forgery’.
There are websites stating they sell counterfeit legal documents such as passports, driving licenses, green cards IDs and other government documents. Usually, they state up front that it is a counterfeit, but they never mention that it is illegal and that you may go to jail when caught.
Possession of fake legal documents such as passports is taken very seriously by law enforcement, especially in the US. Having a counterfeit ID without a legitimate reason will land you in jail for up to 10 years. Other countries too have equally harsh punishments.
Websites selling forged documents might state that you can use them legally for the intended purpose, such as travelling or driving. This is simply not true. Legal documents may only be issued by governments. You may apply for them online in some countries but only at government, state, county or municipality websites.
These documents will never represent the original documents because all legal papers are recorded in the system and can easily be cross-checked against the official database. 21st-century technology outweighs the “legitimate looking” documents.
Counterfeit, “fake” or stolen documents are usually connected to criminal organizations. This way you not only fund criminal activities, but you may also endanger yourself. There are cases where a person has ordered a fake document online, and next gets extorted for ordering it by the same organization.
Never apply for documents anywhere except the official organization. If you are looking to replace a lost identity document, request a duplicate with the original issuer. Else, you risk being hit with a hefty fine or landing up in jail for what you might assume is a minor offence or without even realizing that you were using a forged document.
