A signature has great value for business, court proceedings, and even in banking institutions since it means agreement, respect, and authentication. The situation is serious when a forged signature occurs since the consequences are numerous and may affect life in various spheres, such as fraud, court issues, financial troubles, or other problems. Forensic document examiners must be able to detect signature forgery, since it is their specialty and their responsibility.
Forensic document examination is a complex process that is based on science, investigation, and knowledge of handwriting. In this blog post, we will learn about methods of detection and the explanation of the importance of forensic document examination.
Types of Signature Forgery
"Forgery" refers to the copying of a handwritten signature of an individual to create a misleading impression in some circumstances. Such actions can be observed in a wide variety of situations, such as property disputes, bank fraud, insurance fraud, or questionable agreements.
Here are some types of signature forgeries detected by forensics specialists:
Simple Forgery
- Forgery without any attempt to mimic the signature in its appearance.
- It is an obvious type of forgery that can be spotted easily.
- Such signatures generally differ greatly from their originals, since they lack many characteristics.
Traced Forgery
- A forgery, which is made using the tracing method.
- The forgery is created by tracing the signature with the help of tracing paper, carbon paper, or stacked documents.
- The traces of such forgery are evident and can be revealed during the investigation process.
Freehand Simulation
- The most complex form of forgery is when a forger imitates the signature after training himself.
- Even though the forgery can pass the visual verification, there are still distinctive features that are noticed by forensic document examiners.
Role of Forensic Document Examiners
Forensic document examiners do not simply verify a signature in an automatic way but conduct an analysis that involves scientific techniques. Forensic document examiners conduct a thorough analysis of each stroke, movement, and other evidence of the signature. The examination process is not conducted solely based on one clue.
While analyzing a document, forensic document examiners consider such aspects as:
- Letter formations
- Measurements and spacing between letters
- Pen strokes' rhythms
- Pressure applied during the writing of the signature
- Handwriting is a skill that cannot be easily reproduced by another person.
There are individual peculiarities that are characteristic only of the owner of the signature.
Key Techniques Used to Detect a Forgery
Visual formation
With the help of magnifiers, examiners take a closer look at a disputed signature and compare it with the genuine ones.
Examiners pay attention to such factors as the following factors:
Letter shapes
- Spacing and alignment between letters
- Sizes of letters
- Connections and breaks of strokes
Any small deviation may indicate forgery, such as a strange shape, unusual size, or incorrect spacing between letters.
Analysis of line quality
- A genuine signature always looks natural and smooth.
- Authentic signatures are characterized by a steady and confident line of the stroke.
- Forged signatures have a jerky or hesitant nature.
Signs of forgery:
- Tremors
- Unusual breaks or pauses
- Unusual movements
Such signs indicate the fact of simulation or tracing of a signature.
Pen pressure examination
Each person puts certain pressure on his/her pen while signing something.
During the analysis, with the help of special magnifiers, experts check such factors as the following:
- Changes in pressure during signature writing
- Presence of indentation
- Ink spreading
- Forgery tries to duplicate the pressure pattern.
Replicating someone's pen pressure is much more difficult compared to imitating signature shapes.
Microscopic Analysis
While large signs may be detected with the naked eye, sometimes the work with signatures requires microscopic analysis of the document.
Stereomicroscopes allow for detailed analysis and checking for the following:
- Overlapping ink stains or other peculiarities
- Retouching of the signature
- Presence of signs of forging and imitation
Microscopy sometimes provides more information compared to usual visual analysis.
Detection of Tracing Methods
Forgery created by tracing also leaves clear traces, which are characteristic of it:
- Indentation caused by the pressure of the pen
- Pencil marks under the ink
- Practices of smudging
All such signs become evident with special methods such as oblique lighting and imaging of forgery.
Instrumental Examination
There are also some modern methods and technologies of forgery detection.
Video Spectral Comparator (VSC)
- It can help to detect changes in the ink used during signing.
Electrostatic Detection Apparatus (ESDA)
- Detects indented writing impressions.
Computerized image processing
- Allows for detailed enlargement of the forgery.
Modern methods sometimes allow noticing things that were not visible before.
Comparison with Known Signatures
One of the most important stages of the detection of a forged signature is comparison with known genuine signatures.
Some of the features analyzed by document examiners are the following:
- Letter shapes and their slants
- Rhythm and speed of writing the signature
- Personal styles of writing
Such a comparison allows one to conclude whether the disputed signature is genuine or fake.
Challenges in Forgery Detection
Signature forgery analysis is not always straightforward due to natural variations in signatures and sometimes the absence of genuine examples for comparison. Thus, forensic document examiners should use a combination of various methods with their experience, which helps them reach a holistic conclusion.
Importance in Legal Investigation
Cases related to forgery of a signature may cause such consequences as:
- Fraud and theft disputes over the property, agreements, and many more.
- A forensic document examiner plays the crucial role in such situations, providing necessary expertise.
- Reports of experts allow for determining the authenticity of the disputed document.
- Sometimes an expert can be called in court to explain his/her conclusions.
Conclusion
Forgery of a signature is one of the problems in the legal and financial spheres. Nevertheless, forensic document examination gives an opportunity to identify forgery with the help of visual analysis, examination of pen pressure, microscopic analysis, and instrumental examination of a signature. Since it is impossible to exactly reproduce a signature with all its distinctive features, forensic document examiners guarantee that signature forgery is detected in case of its occurrence.