Auto-Forgery
Definition
A genuine signature executed by the legitimate signer on a document they later deny, undetectable by handwriting comparison alone; requires document-dating and ink-dating techniques.
- Nature
- Genuine signature, later denied by the signer
- Handwriting comparison
- Cannot detect it alone
- Requires
- Document dating and ink dating
Common questions
Why can't ordinary handwriting comparison catch an auto-forgery?+
The strokes genuinely came from the claimed signer's own hand, so a comparison against their known writing will match. The dispute is about intent and timing, not about who physically wrote the signature.
What techniques actually help resolve an auto-forgery claim?+
Ink aging, examination of the sequence between printing and signing, indented writing analysis, and any available document metadata can establish whether the signature was added at the time the signer claims.
Related terms
- ESDA
- Electrostatic Detection Apparatus; detects latent indentations in paper by charging the surface and cascading toner particles, revealing tracing stylus pressure and writing...
- Exemplar Set
- The collection of known genuine signatures used as the comparison baseline; SWGDOC and ENFSI guidelines specify a minimum of 20-30 exemplars spanning...
- Freehand Simulation
- A forgery produced by visually studying the target signature and reproducing it from memory, without mechanical tracing; characterised by slow pen speed,...
- Indented Tracing
- A tracing method in which a stylus or pen presses the genuine signature outline through to a blank beneath, leaving physical indentations...
- Line Quality
- The overall fluency, rhythm and pressure variation of a stroke. Genuine writing has smooth, rhythmic, pressure-modulated lines; forgeries show tremor, blunt starts...
- Motor Programme
- The stored neuromuscular sequence that controls handwriting execution. Once stable in adulthood, it runs largely automatically, making handwriting consistent and individuating.
- Natural Variation
- The normal within-writer fluctuation in individual features across repetitions of the same letter or writing task; an examiner assesses whether questioned-writing variation...
- Retouch
- A second application of ink to a stroke by the forger, correcting a perceived error; produces double ink-layer detectable by oblique lighting...
- Video Spectral Comparator (VSC)
- A multispectral imaging instrument combining UV, visible, and near-infrared illumination with selectable emission filters and a calibrated digital camera; the primary bench...