CamouflageIDs, NoveltyIDforum, eFakeID, etc. review: These fake ID sites *ARE* scams, but! 2

I know most of you will think I'm a jerk for even mentioning this, but I feel like I have to anyway: YOU ARE COMPLAINING ABOUT GETTING SCAMMED BY A SERVICE YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE BEEN USING IN THE FIRST PLACE. Don't get me wrong, the guys who run these "Fake ID Factories" are obviously despicable low-life turds for taking your money and cheating you. That much is a given... the websites, their owners, and obviously the services they offer all suck.

But you all seem to gloss over the fact that you were trying to do something illegal. Before someone embarrasses himself by saying you only wanted to buy a fake ID "as a joke" or for the "novelty" of it, let me give you this advice: don't insult your own credibility and our intelligence. You wouldn't have shelled out hundreds of dollars to buy a fake ID unless you planned on actually using it. That fact is inarguable, but even if it weren't (and you were somehow lame enough to buy a fake ID as a joke), the government still considers it a crime. Ordering a false ID card that is intended to look like a legitimate state or federal ID is considered fraud, regardless of the buyer's intent. Such a crime is punishable by hefty fines and, in many states, jail time as well. If you are unconvinced of this, just look up "Fake IDs" on the FTC's website: http://www.ftc.gov. For fraud laws and document falsification penalties that are specific to your state, visit your your respective STATE-NAME.gov website.

None of you *deserved* to be scammed by CamouflageIDs, NoveltyIDforum, eFakeID, or any other fake ID site. A scam is a scam is a scam... regardless of who does the bilking, who is getting hung out-to-dry, and what false claims and broken promises are made. Frankly, I honestly feel for you and share your frustration. But why do you suppose no one has filed official complaints against these companies? Unlike other online scammers, these jerks are running a scam that is virtually bullet-proof. None of their "customers" can report them to the FTC or even the Better Business Bureau. Why not? Because doing so would mean admitting that you intended to break the law in the first place. You may have noticed that every year or so a news story will pop up on Reuters' "Oddly Enough" section about some schmuck who called the police to report that he was cheated out $40 when he tried to buy a bag of pot. Needless to say, the story always ends with the police arresting the alleged scam victim (not the pot dealer) on drug-related charges. The situation you're complaining about with these fake ID sites is really quite similar. The only difference is that you have a paper-trail and would otherwise have a pretty solid case, if filing such a complaint wouldn't get you into trouble.

I want to raise one more point... I recognize that the vast majority of you intended to use your fake IDs for more-or-less victimless crimes (sneaking into clubs, buying alcohol or cigarettes as a minor, etc). The problem is that you're not thinking of the broader implications of doing business with a fake ID service, scammer or otherwise. While you may have planned to use yours to buy a beer a couple years early, others could use their fake IDs for much more nefarious purposes. Take a look at the comments on this website and you'll see a number of complaints from people who are clearly non-native English speakers. Of course that fact alone doesn't mean they have any more sinister intent than you, but it does raise some troubling prospects for what someone *could* do with a fake ID.

In nearly every case of terrorism perpetrated by foreign nationals against Western countries, the suspects used false ID services to gain entry into the country and to work an live in the states that they would later attack. That's obviously a frightening scenario, but it's also not very common. Consider less extreme uses of fake IDs that are also potentially dangerous. Take, for instance, a repeat offender who is unable to get a legitimate driver's license because of a long history of drunk driving. Are you comfortable giving that person a fake ID? How about a criminal who chooses to flee the state rather than face a lengthy prison sentence? Is it ok for that person to use a fake driver's license and Social Security number to assume a new identity in another state? Or you can consider a child molester who avoids registering as a sex offender by taking on a new name. Do you want that guy to be able to live near your neighborhood school? I could go on and on, but I assume you get the point.

I won't get into a lengthy academic discussion here, but think about this rule-of-thumb written by a very smart--and very dead--guy in the late 1700s: "ACT ONLY ACCORDING TO THAT MAXIM WHEREBY YOU CAN AT THE SAME TIME WILL THAT IT SHOULD BECOME A UNIVERSAL LAW."

In this case, you have to ask yourself the following question: IS IT OK FOR ME TO BUY A FAKE ID IF IT MEANS THAT *EVERYONE* ELSE CAN ALSO BUY ONE, REGARDLESS OF HOW THEY PLAN TO USE IT?

I don't know how you would answer that question, but considering the prospect of the drunk driver, the child molester, the criminal, and the terrorist all having access to falsified identity documents, I think I'd choose to shut down the fake ID mills all together.