FORGERY AND

ITS TYPES

By: Dr. Vaishali Abrol

Lecturer
SFS, NFSU.
 FORGERY

Forgery may be defined as the creation of any false written

document or alteration of a genuine one, with the intent to
defraud.
“Forgery” is any act of making, uttering or altering a writing,
signature or any other aspect of document in such a way as:
• To convey a false impression concerning its authenticity
• Imposing a legal liability
• With a purpose to deceive or injure another
 FORGERY

FORGERY UNDER SECTION 463 IPC

“Whoever makes any false document or part of a

document, with intent to cause damage or injury, to the
public or to any person, or to support any claim or title,
or to cause person to part with property, or to enter into
any express or implied contract, or with intent to
commit fraud or that fraud may be committed, commits
forgery”.
 ELEMENTS OF FORGERY
To support a charge of forgery, the elements of proof must be
established.

These elements include:

❖ Falsemaking

❖ Legal Liability

❖ Forger’s Identity

❖ Intent to Defraud
 DEFINITION O F C H E A T I N G

➢ The term “cheating” is defined

under section 415 of IPC.

➢ It means fraudulently or dishonestly

deceiving any person either verbally
or on document likely to cause or
harm to the person in body, mind ,
reputation or property .
D O C U M E N T S PRONE TO
F O R G E RY
 Threatening letters  Credit cards

 Ransom notes  Passports

 Extortion letters  Visa

 Legal documents  Financial deeds

 Applications  Voter registration

 Cheques  Orders & Petitions

 Drivers Licenses  Suicide notes

 Contracts & agreements  Lottery tickets etc

 Currency notes
Features of forged documents
CLASSIFICATION OF FORGERIES

Signature forgery

Forgery Document forgery

Handwriting forgery

Counterfeiting
TYPES OF SIGNATURE FORGERY

Traced

Transpla Simulate
nted d

Signature
Forgeries

Spurious Tricked
 Traced Forgery

 When two or more signatures are remarkably similar and

superimposable. It is termed as Traced Forgery.
 It is done by four methods:

Traced
Forgery

Direct Carbon Indentation Projector

 Direct Tracing : It is done with the help of transmitted light and
genuine signature.

 Carbon Tracing : Carbon Paper is placed under the genuine

signature to create its image on the new document.

 Tracing Paper : Outlines of the genuine signature are traced on the

tracing paper or blotting paper. These outlines are then transferred
to the new document in form of indentation marks.

 Projector Tracing: Genuine model of signature is projected on the

projector screen
 DIRECT T RACI NG

Pen Lift

Tremor
s

Blunt
RepatcEhnding
ing

Retouchin
Blunt g
Start

Line Quality : Uniform Line Quality : Defective

 CARBO N T RACI NG

Carbon
Deposition

Abnormal
penlift

Line Quality : Uniform Line Quality : Defective

 INDENTATION

Tremo Blunt
rs Ending

Repatc
hing

Indentatio
n Marks

Line Quality : Uniform Line Quality : Defective

 Simulated Forgery
In this type of forgery, the forger selects a model signature or
writing and tries to copy the design of letters and other broad
features depending upon his skill, practice and competency. It
is of two types : Copied & Freehand Practiced.

Copied Simulation

• It is done by copying the genuine signature by process of

drawing and keeping the model signature in front for
reference

Freehand Practiced Simulation

• These are created by practice over the genuine model and

memorizing the model and design of signature. These
signatures lack natural variations.
 COPIED SIMULATION

Retouchi Abnormal
ng Pen Lift

Abnormal
pen pause
Blunt Start
Hesitatio
n Marks

Line Quality : Uniform Line Quality : Defective, abnormally

bigger size
 SPURIOUS SIGNATURES

Spurious signatures are in the name of

non-existent person or in the name of any
person without knowing the genuine
signature of the person.
It is a freely written forged signature.
 TRICKED SIGNATURES

Tricked Signatures involves most of the

genuine portion of the signature and slight
addition of strokes in the rest of the
portion of writing.
 Transplanted Signatures

The genuine signatures are transplanted on any

desired document using three ways:-

Cello-tape

Xerox

Use of Scanner /Printer

L I F T E D R E V E N U E S TA M P
T Y P E S O F HANDWRITING F O R G E R Y
Simulated Handwriting

• In this type of forgery, the forger selects a model writing and tries to
copy the design of letters and other broad features depending upon his
skill, practice and competency.

Spurious Handwriting

• In this type of forgery, the forger may just write the

content(name/sign) of other person in his own handwriting without
even knowing the style of writing of that person.

Disguised Handwriting

• In disguised Handwriting, the writer himself tries to change ,alter or

modifies his handwriting without adopting the features of another
person’s writing.
• The deliberate change/alter in one’s own handwriting is known as
Disguised Handwriting.
D I S G U I S E D HANDWRI TI NGS
TYPES OF DOCUMENT FORGERY
• It is defined as the insertion of any word, digit
Addition
etc which changes the meaning or value of the
document.

• It is defined as the deletion of any word, digit

Deletion etc which changes the meaning or value of the
document.

• The removal of a page from any document and

Substitution substituting another in its place containing matter
having different meaning from that of the page
removed is a kind of fraud.

• The fraudulent overwriting to change the contents of

Overwriting documents are usually made in a careful manner
Overwriting in documents can be examined by oblique
light or UV ray.
 Addition in Cheque

Normal Light View Spot Fluorescence view

Additions

• Raised cheques, drafts, commercial papers etc., are altered by

adding figure zero or by changing “1” to “4”, “1” to “7”, “3” to “8”, “0”
to “8” and by adding “ty” to “Six”, “Seven”, “Eight”, “Nine” etc.
• Additions of Handwritten or typewritten text over genuine
signatures.
• Interlineations can be encountered i.e. the act of inserting writing or
typewriting between two lines of writing/typewriting.
• Sometimes the whole page is added to the existing document, called
Page Insertion or Pagination.
Detection of Additions

• Examination of sequence of crossed strokes.

• Different kind of ink.
• Relative location of added character.
• Size of added character.
• Width of the stroke.
• Slant of the character
• Indentation marks on the paper
• Examination of security markings i.e. watermarks or wiremarks
• Physical matching of the paper
Deletions

• This is an act of removing the writings from the writing surface.

This can be either done by using erasures or obliteration.

• Erasures can be of two types:

• Mechanical (by rubbing an abrasive material over the writing)
• Chemical erasure (chemical is used to alters the dyes in the ink so that
they are no longer visible).
Causes of erasures
• Carelessness while executing the document.
• Ignorance.
• Inefficiency.
• Fraudulent changes in the document.
• Easy availability of chemical agents.
Detection of mechanical erasure
• Ink runs out, sidewise and forming series of minute extending in
both directions.
• Thinning the portion where erasure is applied.
• Tint of ink show little difference from the normal line.
• Erased portion of document does not reflect as much light as the
smoother portion reflects.
• Disturbance of paper fibre.
• Erased portion allows more light through it.
• Use of instruments.
 Detection of chemical erasure
• Removes only dye or colour but leave chemicals.
• Affects documents (Loosens up paper fibres)
• Gives fluorescence under U.V Radiations and makes invisible writing
legible.
• Sometimes the erased portion shows reflection variations under oblique
light.
• Sometimes examination under transmitted light will also prove
beneficial.
• Pale yellow stain after the laps of time.
• Use of instruments.
 Obliteration
• Covering the original writing/typewriting/printed matter with some ink or

any opaque material to make the writings invisible or undecipherable.

• Mistaken typewriting covered with cancellation marks.
• Application of correction fluid to paint over mistaken matter.
• Such type of documents can be deciphered under transmitted, IR, UV and
oblique lighting conditions.
 Overwriting
• Writings made on the top of pre existing writings.

• Examination of sequence of strokes will aid in determining which of

the writing has been made first.
• The original writings can be deciphered under transmitted, oblique, UV
or sometimes IR lighting conditions.
 CONTD….

Normal Light view Spot Fluorescence view

 OBLI T E RAT I ONS

Normal Light view Transmitted light view

E R A S U R E D WRI TI NGS
Signat u re on a blank sh eet
Under Infrared light
 Identification of forgery
Class and individual characteristics helps in the identification of forgery.
There are some important characteristics which are affected or differs in
forged and genuine signatures or handwritings:
Line Quality
Speed
Tremors
Size & Proportion
Alignment
Pen Pressure
Pen lifts
Embellishments
Instruments used for identification of
forged documents
Stereomicroscope
ESDA (Electrostatic Detection Apparatus)
Projectina
VSC (Video Spectral Comparator)
UV Light Examination
Oblique light Examination
C OUNTERFEITING

CURRENCY

PASSPORT/VISA

CREDIT/DEBIT C A R D S

STA M P S

SEALS
1 : See-through register with denominational numeral 2000.
2 : Latent image with denominational numeral 2000.
3 : Denominational numeral in Devnagari.
4 : Portrait of Mahatma Gandhi at the centre.
5 : Micro letters ‘RBI’ and ‘2000’ on the left side of the banknote.
6 : Windowed security thread with inscriptions and a colour shift from green to
blue when the note is tilted.
7) Guarantee Clause, Governor’s signature with Promise Clause and RBI emblem
towards right.
8) Mahatma Gandhi portrait and electrotype (2000) watermarks.
9) Number panel with numerals growing from small to big on the top left side and bottom right
side.
10)Denominational numeral with Rupee Symbol.2000 in colour changing ink (green to
blue) on the bottom right.
11) Ashokan Pillar emblem on the right.
12) Horizontal rectangle with 2000 in raised print on the right.
13) Seven angular bleed lines on left and right side in raised print.
14) Year of printing on the note
15 ) Swachh Bharat logo with the slogan
16) Language panel towards the centre
17) Motif of Mangalyan - reflecting country's first venture in the
interplanetary space
WATERMARKS

Watermarks are the designs that are generated in the currency

notes incorporated during the manufacturing process by varying
the distribution of fibres in the given space. The various
watermarks that are present in the 2000 denomination note are:
 Mahatma Gandhi Portrait

 2K Watermark

 RBI watermark

 2000 Watermark

 Electrotype watermark
 BLEED LINES

Seven angular bleed lines in 5 sets of 1-2-1-2-1 are

printed on the obverse in both, the upper left and
the right hand edge of the notes to aid the visually
impaired
 I DENTIFICATION M ARK
Identification marks are made on banknotes to
help the visually impaired identify the
denomination of notes. On Indian banknote of
denomination value 2000 it appears on the right
side of the watermark window. The mark in this
denomination is a rectangle located above the
Ashoka Pillar Emblem on the right side and has
2000 numeral written in the rectangle
 M ICRO LETTERING

 Micro lettering refers to the minute inscriptions that

can only be read under a microscope or by using a
hand lens/ magnifier. On the Indian currency note of
denomination value 2000 are encrypted “RBI 2000
INDIA”. These words are written alternatively on the
left side of the currency note

OMRON FEATURES

 Omron feature refers to the circle-shaped anti-copy

feature located on the left side of the note just above
the latent image
OPTICALLY VARI ABLE INK

 The denomination value 2000 in the Mahatma

Gandhi watermark window of the 2000 currency
note is printed on the obverse using optically
variable ink.
 The numerals change its colour when viewed at
various angles.
SECURITY THREAD

 The security thread in the 2000

denomination currency note is a
3mm wide strip, usually 6
windowed and reads three
words particularly “RBI”,
“BHA RAT” and “2000”
imprinted on it alternatively
with the security thread
changing its colour from green
to blue on being held at an
angle and tilted
 SEE THROUGH R EGISTER
The see through register refers to the denomination
numeral 2000 that is printed on both sides of the note,
on one side, it is hollow and on the other side it is filled
up. It is written horizontally just along the micro
lettering and above the latent image on the left side of
the currency note. It looks like one single design when
seen against the light
 I NTAGLIO P RINTING

 Inscriptions or motifs printed using the Intaglio printing or

raised printing technique can be felt by touch.
 On Indian banknote of denomination ₹ 2000, the portrait of
Mahatma Gandhi, the Reserve Bank seal, guarantee and
promise clause, Ashoka Pillar Emblem on the right, RBI
Governor’s signature are printed in intaglio
OPTICAL FIBRES

 Optic fibres are the small

fibres that are randomly
distributed on both the
obverse and reverse of the
currency note. These
fibres, only visible when
the note is viewed under
a U V trans-illuminator,
are yellow, blue and
orange in colour
 LATENT IMAGE

 The latent image is a safety feature that is

covered within the note. It is visible only when it
is held horizontally at eye level. The obverse of
Rs.2000 currency note come with a horizontal
band towards the down left of the currency note
and encompasses a latent image featuring the
denominational value in numeral
 LANGUAGE PANEL

 On the reverse side of the note is present the

language panel displaying the denomination of
the note in 15 of the 22 official languages of
India.
 The languages are displayed in alphabetical
order- Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada,
Kashmiri, Konkani, Malayalam, Marathi, Nepali,
Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu and
Urdu
 NEW NUMBERING PATTERN

 The numbers in both the number panels tends to increase

from left to right while the first three alpha numeric
characters remains constant in size.
 Inset Letter: The inset is a capital letter and appears on
the number panel and is indicative of the printing press
where the notes have been printed. Presence or absence of
the same does not guarantee the authentication of the
denomination
 GEOMETRICAL PATTERNS

 The note exhibits other designs and geometrical

patterns aligning with the overall colour scheme.
The geometric pattern on the left and the right
corner of the note when joined forms a complete
pattern
 The word RBI is written on the
inside of the frame of the
spectacles of Mahatma Gandhi.

 The words INDIA BHARAT

(Hindi) are alternatively
inscribed on the left and
right side of the clothes of
Mahatma Gandhi near the
neck
1 : See-through register in denominational numeral.
2 : Latent image of the denomination numeral.
3 : Denomination numeral in Devnagari
4 : Mahatma Gandhi’s portrait in centre facing to right.
5 : Windowed security thread that changes colours from green to blue
when the note is tilted.
6 : Guarantee clause, Governor's signature with promise clause and RBI
emblem tilted towards the right
7 : Portrait and electrotype watermarks.
8 : Number panel with numerals growing from small to big on the top left side
and bottom right side.
9 : Denomination in numerals with rupee symbol in colour changing ink (green
to blue) on the bottom right.
10 : Ashoka pillar emblem on the right.
11 :Circle with Rs 500 in raised print on the right.
12 :Five bleed lines on left and right in raised print.
1 : Year of printing of the note on left
2 : Swachh Bharat logo with the slogan.
3 : Language panel towards the centre.
4 : Red Fort with Indian flag.
5 : Denomination numeral in Devnagari on right.
UV LIGHT

 OPTICAL FIBRES
 FLUOR ES CENT NUMERAL
D E N O M I NAT I O N
 SECURITY THREAD
SECURITY FEATURES OF INDIAN PASSPORTS

 Substrate: Ashok Pillar cylinder water marks.

 Cover page: Ashok Chakra printing (visible in 365 nm).
 First page-body printing: Black in visible light and
green in Luminescence.
 Heat Activated Ultra Violet (HAUV) film: Printing visible
in red and yellow in U V.
 Data page: Micro line, text, tint, design (Emblem, Govt. of
India), Passport printing, rainbow printing: Blue and orange
printing, gothic numbering, bifluorescencent invisible design,
invisible fibers (green and blue).
 Page numbering: Micro lines on all pages visa visible and
invisible.
 Passport number: 8 digit alphanumeric laser perforated
conicals of passport booklet
CHECKLIST FOR FORENSIC SCREENING/EXAMINATION
OF PASSPORTS
 Bio data: photograph, name, date of birth, issue and
expiration date, signature
 General inspection: exterior view, binder thread, numbering
by perforation, watermark
 Transmitted light examination: all the pages, fibres,
printing processes, substrates, laminations under 10X
magnification
 U V light examination: fibres, printing inks, paper
including overt and covert security features
 Visible light examination: security features such as
passport papers/pages, gothic/punched number,
biographical/bio data page, LS I , barcode, micro printing,
fugitive/sensitizing ink
 Stereomicroscopic examination: document number,
substrate elements, print processes, lamination
 Oblique light examination: dicuts
 Biographical/Bio Data Page
of Back Side
Biographical/Bio Data Page
of Front Side
 LETTER SCREEN IMAGE (LSI)

 The Ministry of External Affairs launched a new

series of passport booklets in April 2013 with
the Letter Screen Image (LSI) of the holders.
 In L S I passport booklets, the personal data such
as name, address, date of birth, file number, etc.
of the applicant are embedded in tiny fonts,
which forms the ghost/shadow image of the
holder.
 The L S I passport is now being issued by all
passport issuing authorities in India and
abroad. L S I is appearing as ghost images of the
applicant and it is the replica of the applicant’s
original photograph.

Letter Screen Image on

Front Bio Data Page
HAUV Film under UV Light
GUILLOCHES/FINE LINE PATTERN-

▪ Guilloches are decorative

engraving technique by which
a very precise intricate
repetitive pattern or design is
mechanically engraved into
an underlying material with
fine detail.
▪ They are the traditional
elements of the document
design comprising regular
geometrical patterns of fine
lines, which are produced by
special machines or on a
computer.