Chinese companies appear to be flooding the U.S. with very realistic looking
Chinese companies appear to be flooding the U.S. with very realistic looking fake drivers licenses, and according to both local and federal law enforcement it is a growing concern.
The fake IDs are showing up in bars and clubs all over the Bay Area and the state according to Chris Albrecht with the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. “14-, 15-,16-year olds are regularly found in possession,” said Albrecht.
Albrecht keeps a collection of fakes and noted old-fashioned detection techniques aren’t enough any more. “Counterfeiting has become a much more sophisticated business and counterfeiters are, in fact, trying to mimic a lot of the security features that are in place,” he said.
The most popular fakes these days: Arizona drivers licenses.
“From my understanding a lot of them are coming from China,” said Boyle.
UC Berkeley police recently confiscated a shipment of fake IDs from China. “We were contacted by the Department of Homeland Security,” said Lt. Marc Decoulode.
Decoulode said the feds intercepted the package, containing 24 fake drivers licenses, which was headed to a campus fraternity. “They put their true name and a false date of birth so even if someone were to ask for a second piece of ID, like a university student ID, the name and the photo would match the fraudulent ID.
Police said the Berkeley IDs were purchased through a website which advertised realistic-looking drivers licenses from a dozen different states, though none from California.
So how are the counterfeiters getting away with it? The ABC’s Chris Albrecht told us: “With blind shipments and that kind of thing, it becomes very difficult to investigate thoroughly.”
But it’s just the kind of case the U.S. Postal service does investigate. “There’s probably going to be a number of federal and state agencies that will be very interested in this,” said postal inspector Jeff Fitch.
The concern is that these IDs could be used for a lot more than getting into bars. “ID theft, ID fraud. Sky’s the limit,” said Fitch.