Criminals sell fake BankID documents on closed chat forums, which are used, among other things, to buy energy drinks, snuff and alcohol – even though you are not of age. One who tried to buy was “Maja”, which is actually called something else.
The 17-year-old would not come of age until next month, but when her friend celebrated her birthday at a nightclub in Gothenburg, she wanted to join. “Maja’s” close friends tipped her off to a secret discord group, where you could buy fake ID documents that looked like they came from BankID.
– The friends said that it works great and the app has many users, says “Maja” in police interrogation.
So it was time to buy
She downloaded discord and within an hour she had digital documents in an app, identical to BankID’s, that showed she was 18 years old. She paid SEK 289 for that.
– I asked if I could buy leg. So from there I had to send pictures, to use for the addition and then which social security number I wanted. Kind of like that, the teenage girl continues in the interrogation.
Once there, her friends showed their genuine physical ID documents. When it was “Maja’s” turn, she showed her digital. The nightclub security guard knew there were fake apps and became suspicious. He chose, just as BankID and the police urge, to scan “Maja’s” app.
The result in the guard’s mobile was a new QR code – not a verified person. A remorseful 17-year-old admitted that the ID document was fake and the police were called to the scene. About six months later, she is now being sentenced at the Gothenburg District Court for falsely using a document. The penalty will be a suspended sentence and a fine to the crime victims’ fund.
Big dark speech
The verdict against “Maja” is unusual but not unique. Jan Olsson, crime commissioner at the National IT Crime Centre, explains that the dark story is large.
– Coming across fake or physical ID cards is incredibly easy. We have the development of the internet to thank for that, how easily you can anonymize yourself as a buyer and seller, says Olsson.
– There are any number of apps that also sell fake driver’s licenses, passports and employer certificates. Actually, everything is for sale. So what it comes down to is that we have to become better at identifying the action before us, he continues.
The crime commissioner explains that the police investigate the sellers “by the minute” – and that it depends on where in the world the marketplaces are located. When they have time to investigate them, they remove them.
– But you also have to be clear that there are a lot of platforms that sell things like this. They are constantly increasing, so this is a game of cat and mouse. The solution is to control the act instead, so we avoid being exposed to crime, says Jan Olsson.
Great turnover
The turnover of the fraud business is large, but it is unclear exactly how much it is, he explains.
– We know that the price you have to pay as a user to get this product is not particularly high. But if many people buy it, it will of course be a considerable sum in the end.
Is it difficult to reach the sellers?
– It is difficult to reach them compared to a drunk driver, but it is definitely not impossible and we do it from time to time.