Fraudulent documents are used to facilitate terrorism, smuggling, drug trafficking, immigration violations, and many other crimes. In fact, some of the most significant crimes and terrorist events of the past few decades, including the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, were made possible by the use of fake identification documents. These and other fraudulent documents enable criminals to escape detection, conceal their true identities, and pass through borders undetected. This course is designed to teach law enforcement officers and analysts how to spot fraudulent documents and prevent criminals from using those documents to commit crimes. The course will identify major document types, discuss security features of the most used documents, and highlight areas to inspect when examining a document. Next, the course will explore document mills, discuss the connections between fraudulent documents and human smuggling, and provide interview and interrogation strategies to employ after you’ve found a fraudulent document. After completing the course, you will be able to:

  • Correctly identify federal identification documents required for immigration in the United States.
  • Correctly identify other federal identification documents encountered in the United States.
  • Demonstrate knowledge of U.S. federal laws applicable to identifications, illegal entry and other immigration violations.
  • Correctly identify elements required on state driver license documents.
  • Correctly identify elements of identification that are commonly altered or fraudulently created.
  • Demonstrate an understanding on the type of equipment needed and used to create fraudulent identifications.
  • Correctly identify state and local offenses that may involve transactions of fraudulent identifications.
  • Correctly identify resources for criminal investigations.
  • Prepare interview questions for subjects involved in fraudulent identification crimes.
  • Confidently provide courtroom testimony on elements of a fraudulent document.

This course is designed for law enforcement officers and analysts who may encounter fraudulent documents during the conduct of their duties.