Signature Forgery: Types, Detection and Protection

No matter what size your business is, signature forgery is a growing concern globally. Physical signatures and digital signatures can be forged using countless techniques and tools, and the consequences can be severe. Financial loss, legal disputes, and reputational damage are just a few of the consequences of signature forgery.

To help combat signature forgery, we’ve created this comprehensive guide to help you detect signature forgery and protect your business.

What is Signature Forgery?

Signature forgery is the act of copying or replicating a signature without someone’s position, typically with the intent to commit fraud. It can involve both wet signatures and digital signatures. The goal is to recreate the signature as realistically as possible. This allows the fraudster to sign virtually any document, which can wreak havoc on individuals and businesses. Essentially, signature forgery refers to faking someone else’s signature.

You’ve seen it in Hollywood movies – a handsome conman and expert forger uses almost too-simple tricks to make perfect signature replicas. Signature forgery can involve a simple copy of an existing signature, or manipulating an existing one.

Forgers will typically forge signatures to approve and authorize transactions and payments or to get access to highly sensitive information. If you don’t know how to spot the signs of forgery, your business may be at risk.

What are the Different Types of Signature Forgery?

There are several types of signature forgery, including simple forgery, blind forgery, simulated forgery, traced forgery, trace-over forgery, freehand simulation, digital falsification, guided hand false signature, and electronic signature fraud. Here’s what you need to know about all of these types of forgeries.

Simple Forgery

As the name implies, simple signature forgery is just that – simple. This type of signature forgery happens when someone creates a new signature without referencing the original. They don’t attempt to make a perfect match, and they simply sign as if they were the authorized person to sign. Typically, they don’t even know what the correct signature should look like. This is a straightforward, often easy-to-achieve tactic when defrauding small to medium businesses that don’t know how to spot forgeries.

Blind Forgery

Similar to simple forgery, blind signature forgery is where a signature is replicated without the ability to reference the genuine signatures – the difference between blind forgery and simple forgery is that the forger attempts to create a signature that is convincing rather than just signing using a different name. This is another very simple way to forge a signature as many businesses may not verify the signature right away, if at all.

Simulated Forgery

Simulated forgery is likely the one you’re most familiar with – the forger attempts to recreate a signature, a perfect copy. The forger has access to the original signature and practices recreating it as closely as they can on their own. They study the strokes of the letters, the pressure of the writing, and more. This is a difficult skill to master, and most people should be able to spot differences in a real and forged signature.

Traced Forgery

When someone uses traced forgery, they likely are using transparent paper to trace over the signature, then will use carbon paper to transfer the signature onto the document. Finally, they’ll sign over the carbon overlay. It’s a fairly effective forgery method, but traced forgeries aren’t nearly as natural and fluid as real signatures.

Trace-Over Forgery

While it may sound similar to traced forgery, trace-over signature forgery is slightly different. Rather than using transparent paper and carbon copying, a trace-over forgery writes over the original signature in an attempt to copy it. The double ink lines should be a telltale sign of traced-over forgery.

Freehand Simulation

One of the most difficult types of forgery to master is freehand simulation. This is the genuine imitation of a signature without any tracing tools. A skilled forger can accurately replicate the shape of letters, the pressure of the signature, strokes, loops, and more. It takes a lot of time and practice to be a skilled freehand forger, but these are some of the most difficult forgeries to spot.

Digital Falsification of Signature

With so much being done online, forgers have taken their skills digital. If you’re not using a dedicated signature platform, you leave your business open to risk. By manipulating scanned copies of signatures or even software to emulate a signature, forgers can easily falsify digital signatures.

Guided Hand False Signature

Guided hand false signature involves the correct party signing the document but under duress or false pretenses. The correct signer is coerced into signing a document, which makes the signature fraudulent.

Electronic Signature Fraud

Last on our list of signature forgeries is electronic signature fraud. This is a standard definition of signature forgery (using someone’s electronic signature without their consent). Businesses should be wary of using scanned signatures to reduce the risk of electronic signature fraud.

How Can I Detect a Forged Signature?

Detecting a forged signature requires businesses to understand the types of forgeries that can happen, which comes with training and may involve leveraging specific technology to help prevent and reduce risk.

Even the most skilled forgers can leave subtle clues that might indicate the signature is forged

Warning Signs

Warning signs of a forged signature include unnatural letter spacing, unnatural strokes, lack of fluidity, and inconsistent pressure. A natural signature is fluid and consistent. It “looks” and “feels” like a natural signature. If your intuition is telling you that the signature doesn’t look right, it may well not be. Another common warning sign is evidence of tracing, such as double ink marks or faint pencil marks that misalign with the signature.

Handwriting Comparison

Handwriting comparison involves simply comparing the signature with the handwriting of who should actually be signing the document. If the handwriting doesn’t match (such as inconsistent pen pressure, wrong letter shapes, or different fluidity), it’s likely a signature forgery. You can do a simple comparison with the naked eye but may need a magnifying glass or other tools to spot more subtle differences.

Signature Verification Tools

Signature verification tools are used to verify genuine signatures and detect forged ones. The tools may do a handwriting comparison or analyze the strokes, fluidity, and shaping of the signature to determine its authenticity. A direct signature comparison often yields the best results – these tools may struggle when analyzing digitally forged signatures.

Dynamic Feature Analysis

Dynamic feature analysis examines how the signature was written, not just the final product. This method analyzes the writing speed and the signature’s overall rhythm. These tools can do a better job at authenticating signatures when compared to tools that only focus on looking at the original signature or freehand analysis. They’re also great at identifying electronic forgeries. If a signature is handwritten using an electronic device, such as a pad and a stylus, the program can detect the writing movements and can identify forged signatures more accurately.

Forensic Document Examination

Forensic document examination involves an in-depth review of the signature and materials used to create the signature, such as paper and ink. Much more sophisticated tools and tests are used to identify discrepancies. While this method is one of the most accurate in identifying forgeries, it requires trained examiners and isn’t often used outside of legal cases.

Machine Learning Techniques

Machine learning techniques parse through large datasets and detect subtle discrepancies between signatures. AI tools can learn patterns from natural signatures and easily spot forged signatures. The technology is still developing, but there’s a promising future for AI in the world of signature forgery detection.

What Are the Legal Consequences of Falsification of Signature?

The legal consequences of signature falsification include civil lawsuits, fines, and even jail time. Forging a signature is a serious crime in most local and state courts and can lead to criminal charges. Where you are and the type of signature forgery you commit can impact any legal or civil penalties. If the intent is to commit fraud, the punishment is often harsher. 

Both individuals and businesses can pursue legal action against anyone committing forgery, which can lead to significant financial restitution. Joseph Cosey was a famed US forger who went to jail for three years for attempting to sell a fraudulent letter from Abraham Lincoln.

What Are Examples of Signature Forgery?

Signatures are forged virtually every day around the world. From check fraud to identity theft, here are some real-world everyday examples of signature forgery.

If you’ve seen the hit movie “Catch Me If You Can”, you know the story of Frank Abagnale, one of the most prolific check forgers of the 20th century. By age 21, he had defrauded banks and businesses of nearly $2.5 million, cashing over 17,000 checks across 26 countries.

In 2020, identity theft cost individuals over $50 billion in the US alone. Criminals use stolen personal credentials and forged signatures to open accounts, move money, and defraud individuals and businesses. 

Even a student faking a sick note for school is technically an example of signature forgery!

How Can I Protect Against Signature Fraud?

To protect against signature fraud, you should focus on implementing better, more secure tools, as well as focus on learning how to identify signature fraud. Here are our top tips on protecting yourself and your business against signature fraud.

Use of Security Features

Simple security features, both digital and physical, can help prevent signature fraud. Watermarks, encrypted signatures, and tamper-proof seals are just a few practical examples of useful security features that can significantly reduce the risk of fraud.

Regular Examination of Documents

Always review documents and signatures for inconsistencies. You should have an audit and checklist in place when reviewing and validating documents, and it’s best to train your employees on how to spot signs of signature forgery.

Authorization and Permission Checks

Processes with robust checks and controls are much better at mitigating risks. Think through how you handle documentation and signature reviews, and implement strict authorization and validation processes. You may want to require multiple levels of review and sign-off before finalizing agreements or transactions.

Strong Authentication Measures 

Think about implementing additional authentication measures, such as two-factor authentication or biometric verification for electronic signatures. This is an added layer of security to ensure the right person is reviewing and signing the documents.

Keep Software and Systems Up to Date 

If your platforms and systems are not up to date, they may be vulnerable to fraudsters. Software updates often include necessary security updates, so it’s important to keep your systems up to date at all times. Set your platforms and software to update so you never miss crucial new security features automatically.

Educate and Train Employees on Fraud Prevention

We mentioned this previously, but everyone must understand how to recognize forgeries. Train your team on fraud risks and how to detect signature fraud – regular training will keep your team up to speed on the latest tricks and tools that forgers use. If your business deals with high volumes of physical and digital signatures, investing in training for your team is well worth it.

Use Secure E-Signature Platforms Such as Signaturely

Secure e-signature platforms like Signaturely provide the right level of protection against signature forgery. We use encryption, authentication, and audit trails to ensure signatures are always valid and tamper-proof.

Monitor and Audit Signature Activities Regularly

Have a regular audit process in place. While you may have a process to check signatures as they are being signed, it’s good to have a regular post-signature review to ensure things are looking correct. Get in the habit of checking documents against previously validated signatures, and make audits part of your everyday operational processes.

Implement Identity Verification Processes

Always verify the signer’s identity, whether through photo ID or a biometric verification. You shouldn’t take someone’s identity at face value. If you’re unsure about their true identity, don’t move forward with the transaction. If possible, you should have multiple people verify the identities of all parties involved in the transaction.

Frequently Asked Questions