Fake Passports

From time to time I like to see what sort of things people are searching for when they hit FraudBlog.net.

Google Analytics and other software help to disect the traffic flowing to a website or the traffic associate with an RSS feed, a particular link, or someone's Twitter account.

Of course, gaining insight into the users of a particular website is useful on many levels whether one is advertising a product, selling a service or simply posting to a blog.

Sometimes the search terms are a little weird, like how to get ransom money to a bank account and some are just plain funny.

With the recent news about a Canadian left in Kenya due to an unfortunate passport picture, I thought the following sequential list of search terms might shed some light on the frequency of passport falsification.

First search term:
"under uv light fake passport"
Ok, seems cool. Someone's trying to research the security features in a passport.

Next search term:
"what if i got caught using a borrowed passport"
Hmmm, maybe not so cool? I like the use of the term 'borrowed', very diplomatic :)

Next:
"no way to get fake passports"
I would disagree with this one. For more on this, see my post about a passport maker in Peel.

Next:
"how i can travel to canada with fake passport"
Evidently, someone found a 'novelty' passport on the web.

Next:
"sell fake passport in toronto"
Hey, wait a sec! Someone's trying to specialize in buying AND selling!

Next:
"canadian passport seized by police how to get back?"
Heh, sucker!

Technorati Tags: Canada Fake Passports Funny/Food for Thought

If you recall a few years back, the talk surrounding RFID tags cenetered around their implimentation in everyday life and fears regarding government surveillance.

This technology, dating back decades, has been used for everything from espionage, to human tracking to ensuring shelves are stocked at the supermarket. The creators of the most recent version of the RFID developped the device for use in broadcasting data over a specified radius. In no way did they attest to the encryption of the device for purposes of broadcasting private information to specific recipients.

It is of concern then that this technology has been in use for several years in passports, credt cards and various other forms of identification.

Chris Paget, a white-hat hacker, demonstrates in this video what can be done with easily accesible equipment as he reads passports and credit card numbers while driving in the San Francisco area.

The readers Chris discusses are widly available on the web. And the individuals responsible for the use of RFID's in passports? The Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (the US law now requiring passports or other valid ID for air travel from Canada to the US). Unfortunately, the RFID chip maker intended the chip to be used for purposes other than the transmission of sensitive data creating a weakness susceptible to identity theft and fraud.

Technorati Tags: Communications Fraud Prevention Fake Passports

Quite frankly, I love my passport. It takes me pretty much wherever I want to go in the world and even keeps a series of colourful pages of stamps and visas.

Unfortunately, not everyone is entitled to the same privilege of entrance to the location of their choosing.

For those in a compromising situation, a new identity facilitated by a false or borrowed passport can mean the first steps to a new beginning or the perpetuation of a fraud.

Not only used for immigration purposes, a good fake can perpetuate identity theft, drug trafficking and alien smuggling, terrorist activities or can assist in committing financial fraud. When it comes time to verify someone's identity, forgers like Hamdani can throw a wrench in the process, producing fakes not easily detected.

Peel police nab master forger
The Globe and Mail, Canada - Friday, January 18, 2008 - 08:05 AM

Counterfeit passports, travellers cheques and driver's licences seized from an alleged master forger by Peel Regional Police are at the forefront of counterfeiting technology, experts say.

Michael John Hamdani, 49, his son Conan, 24, and three other family members are facing a total of 80 fraud charges after a 10-month police investigation and tips from the public led officers to three locations in Guelph and Brampton containing high-quality forgeries and tools.

"I think that Mr. Hamdani is talented at what he does," Detective Don Jorgensen said. "Although the counterfeit is not perfect, the quality's really good."

Fraud and security consultant Chris Mathers, who has used and purchased forged documents while working undercover for the RCMP, said some features of the forgeries, such as raised printing and images visible under ultraviolet light, show great craftsmanship.

"It's extremely sophisticated and very tightly controlled," Mr. Mathers said.

Police recovered more than $5-million in forged Visa travellers cheques, American Express gift cheques and Canada Post money orders complete with holograms and watermarks. They also found fake Canadian and Pakistani passports, European driver's licences and other government documents, as well as tools such as magnetic encoders and a heated press.

Some tools were made by commercial printers, proving that the forgers also engaged in legitimate services. Constable Tiffany St. Denis said the primary tip came from a silk-screening business.

Mr. Hamdani, a Canadian permanent resident of Pakistani origin, has multiple prior convictions on fraud charges, and caused an international panic in 2003 when he told FBI interrogators that he helped 19 men enter the United States from Canada using his documents. He later admitted it was untrue.

Mr. Jorgensen said the sole motives appear to be financial gain and to use forged supporting documents to obtain real ones. Mr. Mathers agreed these are the most common goals, but said a forger could unwittingly sell identification to extremists.

Mr. Mathers also said a quality fake passport could easily sell for upward of $10,000.

Technorati Tags: Counterfeit Law Enforcement Fake Passports