Mexican State Forensic Experts Now Use Regula 4308 to Reveal High-End Fakes

The Department of Questioned Documents is a part of the Directorate of Expert Services of the Attorney’s General Office of the State of Tabasco, Mexico. This department is the most authoritative institution in document forensic examination at the state level. It deals with investigations of document falsifications in three main aspects: namely, document authenticity verification, analysis of inks (investigation of alterations), and analysis of handwriting.

Challenge

Previously, the Department of Questioned Documents carried out document examinations using a device from another manufacturer. However, its white, ultraviolet, and infrared modules, as well as the camera, had limited capabilities for comprehensive document authenticity verification.

Since the Department of Questioned Documents is the highest authority for carrying out forensic analysis of documents, they deal with sophisticated counterfeits of state-issued travel documents, securities, and banknotes, which nowadays are steadily growing in number.

Unfortunately, now we are witnessing numerous attempts of illegal border crossings with forged documents. Unstable situations in the political arena inevitably lead to an increase in crime and fraud. In turn, the high demand for forged documents sets the trend for the creation of high-quality fakes, which are extremely difficult to detect without advanced forensic equipment.

—Aime Isabel Hernandez Bartolo, technical leader at the Department of Questioned Documents

So, the Department of Questioned Documents searched for a new, top-notch video spectral comparator that would assure correct examination results, thanks to a plethora of light sources and device functions, in order to reliably reveal illegal changes in documents.

Solution

To boost the effectiveness of the research capabilities and build the evidence base of counterfeiting and alterations in documents, our local distributor and partner, PADRON PRIMO, showcased the flagship video spectral comparator, the Regula 4308.

The Department of Questioned Documents not only deals with travel documents; it also must examine inks and handwritten texts. The Regula 4308 provides all the necessary capabilities to meet the needs of investigators.

Authenticity verification of documents:

• A wide range of light sources, such as incident, oblique, and transmitted light of different spectra — white, infrared, and ultraviolet — together with modules for hologram visualization (OVDs) and anti-Stokes effect help to thoroughly examine security features integrated into a document.
• Magnification up to 320x makes it possible to identify printing techniques and further compare them with reference samples.
• The integrated Information Reference Systems catalog, containing digital samples of documents, enables quick but detailed examination of all security features and printing techniques applied to a certain questioned document.

Examination of inks:

• A broad spectrum of narrowband light sources and more than 20 camera filters, a high-resolution spectrometer, and a module for hyperspectral analysis allow experts to examine varied ink properties (including inks that look identical in natural light), and detect evidence of alterations on top of the original content.

Examination of handwriting:

• Two optical systems, as well as a variety of light sources, allow experts to determine whether a handwritten text is original, even if signs of forgery are hard to detect (forgeries made with a plotter, using graphic editors, copying, and so on).
• Regula Forensic Studio makes it easy to analyze handwritten samples from suspected forgers, as well as identify individual handwriting features to come to a fair conclusion.

Result

The Department of Questioned Documents is totally satisfied with the new workflow provided by the Regula 4308. The simple hardware and software installation, along with the user-friendly interface, guaranteed a smooth transition from the old device. The possibility to create examination scripts (programmable steps of changing zoom and light sources, which will further be done automatically) significantly reduces the time it takes to perform routine tasks (e.g., examining many documents of the same type in a sequence). According to the Department of Questioned Documents, such tasks now take half as much time. Plus, reports can be easily generated with the captured photos, examination results, and camera/lighting parameters, which makes the Regula 4308 the perfect choice for state organizations that use law-based procedures of document examination.

It meets our professional needs as it has all the necessary tools for meticulous forensic analysis of documents. It’s a perfect combination of user-friendly software and efficient hardware. The technologies implemented in the Regula 4308 allow us to carry out on average about 80 advanced examinations of documents, in comparison with 40 examinations carried out with the device we used before.

—Aime Isabel Hernandez Bartolo, technical leader at the Department of Questioned Documents