How to Make a Fake ID

This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Eric McClure. Eric McClure is an editing fellow at wikiHow where he has been editing, researching, and creating content since 2019. A former educator and poet, his work has appeared in Carcinogenic Poetry, Shot Glass Journal, Prairie Margins, and The Rusty Nail. His digital chapbook, The Internet, was also published in TL;DR Magazine. He was the winner of the Paul Carroll award for outstanding achievement in creative writing in 2014, and he was a featured reader at the Poetry Foundation’s Open Door Reading Series in 2015. Eric holds a BA in English from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and an MEd in secondary education from DePaul University.

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Want to create a fake ID card? While fake IDs are illegal in most jurisdictions, it isn't hard to make a fake ID for novelty purposes or to flex your graphic design skills. We'll show you easy ways to make a fake ID from an existing ID card and/or a state or regional ID template, and how to print your ID onto convincing materials. Keep in mind that the penalties for making a fake ID often include jail time and thousands of dollars in fines, so don't try using or selling the ID you've created.

Method 1 of 2:

Making a Simple Fake out of Cardstock

The barcode on the back is encoded with the information on the front. Even if you’re changing the text, you still want it to show the same state, license number, and unmodified information.
It is easier to change a photo than to change the text.

Warning: It will be very difficult to use a random ID on the internet because you’ll need to change almost every aspect of the ID. On top of that, the resolution will look wrong when you print it unless you can adjust it to match the size of an ID perfectly.

You can find Sumo Paint at https://sumo.app and Paint.Net at https://www.getpaint.net/. Both of these online programs are free to use.

Alternatively, you can put the new photo over the location where the photo belongs on the ID and the cut the sides of the image off with the crop tool in whatever program you’re using.
Hold the shift key down in Microsoft programs while dragging the corner of a photo to keep the ratio between the sides of the image identical to the original photo.
If your new photo won’t go in front of the ID, right click it and find the layers tab. Select “bring it to the front” or “front” to make it lay on top of the ID.
If you need to take a new photo specifically for your new ID, use a camera and a tripod to take it. Try to duplicate the background on the original ID by hanging a drape or bedsheet of the same color behind you.

Courier, with slab serif, is used on a lot of older licenses.
A lot of newer driver’s licenses use Arial—or some slightly-modified version of it.

You can zoom in and modify the text that already exists instead of replacing it. For example, you can turn an 8 into a 6 by clone stamping the upper section of an 8 on the right. Similarly, you can turn a 6 into an 8 by cloning the bottom right of the lower loop and pasting it into the opening.
If you plan on changing entire lines of text, the end result is going to look really bad. Try to modify as few of the text fields as possible since the clone tools in editing programs will only work on a smaller scale with the complicated backgrounds of most IDs.
Check the base of any new text you enter to ensure that it lines up with the other characters on the ID.

Enter a full name, without abbreviations. The only instance in which you might use an abbreviation is for things like "Albert Smith Jr." or "Thomas Jones III."
Use a realistic birth date. Don’t leave the birth date as 1951 if you look 20 years old.

The weight of cardstock refers to how heavy 500 sheets of a particular type of paper is. 130 is probably the heaviest that you can print at home on a standard printer.
You can use a paper cutter if you have one. This will result in cleaner lines, but they may fray along the edges depending on the style of cardstock you use. [7] X Research source

Leave your ID for 4-8 hours before touching it again.

Depending on the make and model of your laminator, you may need to let it warm up for a few minutes before using it.
If the temperature is too high, the glue in between the 2 layers of cardstock will melt.
Trim the laminate with a pair of scissors or a utility knife. It should be really easy to get a clean cut when trimming the laminate since it’s so thin.

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Printing a High-Quality Fake ID

A lot of medium- and high-end laser printers have the capacity to print on Teslin paper, but the quality may be low if you try to use a printer that doesn’t have manual controls for the print settings.

Warning: Inkjet printers tend to have a tougher time printing on Teflin. Try using Artisyn instead if you have an inkjet printer. The quality of the ID’s material won’t be as good, but the print job will be cleaner.

You can use regular laminate pouches if you want, but butterfly laminates come with a crease that reduces the odds of air bubbles forming on your ID. Since air bubbles are one of the biggest tip-offs that an ID is fake, you really need to use a butterfly pouch.
Get a laminate pouch with a holographic exterior to make your ID look authentic. You won’t be able to find identical patterns unless you buy some illegally or download the template on the deep web.

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To digitally edit a real ID, you’ll need to use the duplicate/stamp clone tool and erase every single line of unique text.
Some templates are form-fillable, meaning that you can simply type each line of text into the template and print it that way.

Warning: There is a high chance that you will accidentally download a virus or malware onto your computer if you do this. Also, you may want to use a VPN if you don't want to get caught by your government. Keep the risks in mind if you’re serious about creating a fake ID.

Don’t take your photo on a phone. Even if the picture looks good, the resolution is probably wrong for an ID card. Use a high-quality camera on a low shutter speed to take the photo.

In Photoshop, click the adjustments panel on the side. Select the layer that your photo is on and slide the brightness, contrast, and saturation to adjust the colors and light in your photo.

Try to make as few adjustments to the size of your image as possible. This will reduce the odds that the resolution comes out fuzzy when you print the ID.

Adjust the text in the boxes so that they match your description. In the United States (and many other countries), the eye color and hair color codes are 3 letters. They represent a corresponding color for hair and eyes. Use the code that most closely matches the hair and eye color of the person in the photo. [15] X Research source

Eye Color:
BLK - Black
GRY - Gray
BLU - Blue
GR – Green
PNK - Pink
BRO – Brown
HZL - Hazel
MUL – Multicolor

Hair Color:
BAL – Bald
BRO – Brown
SDY - Sandy
BLK - Black
GRY - Gray
WHI - White
BLN – Blonde
RED – Red

Other common restriction codes include “B” for people that wear corrective lenses or glasses, and “R” for motorcycles. If either of these apply to you, change the endorsement code.

It can be kind of tough to free-hand a signature with the mouse. Feel free to redo it until you get a signature that matches your real one.
On a lot of fake IDs, the signature is a dead giveaway that it’s not authentic. Do your best to get the thickness of the lines to match by adjusting the size of your brush in the editing software.
Keep in mind that the signature on IDs will never extend beyond the allotted borders for it on a real ID. Use the erase tool to trim any sections that go past the box for your signature.

If you can, use a pigment-based inkjet printer. These tend to produce vibrant results and work well with Teslin, even though they’re inkjet printers. They are usually more expensive though.

The butterfly pouch is just a folded sheet of laminate. The crease at the top is the side you enter into the laminator first. This ensures that no air bubbles get trapped in the laminate.

Laminate the pouch and trim the edges to finish the job. Set your laminator to a medium heat level. Place the sheet, Teslin paper, and butterfly pouch into the laminator crease-first. Slowly guide the ID through the machine and let it sit for 30-45 minutes before opening the paper and discarding it. You will see the pouch sealed around the ID. Trim the edges with a utility knife, to get a clean cut against the edge. [20] X Research source

Community Q&A

How do I deal with law enforcement (FBI, INTERPOL) scanning it against their systems and finding it is fake since it isn't logged?

Nolanblock Community Answer

You're pretty much screwed at that point. Don't try to get alcohol or cigarettes if you are underage. If you do have a fake ID, don't let the police get hold of it.

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Would it be cheaper to make my own one or buy a pre-made one? (I found one for $60) Community Answer

It's cheaper to buy one, and the person who made it will get in a lot of trouble, whereas you're not as likely to.

Where can you find all the materials for this? Community Answer

eBay or Amazon should have everything in this article. Some shops near you could also have some of this stuff.

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No matter how good you think your ID is, law enforcement and other trained professionals will be able to tell that it’s fake. It is extremely dangerous to try and use a fake ID for anything other than novelty or entertainment purposes.

Unlike being caught with a single fake ID that is printed on cardstock, producing high-quality fakes can often be classified as a felony. People have been fined millions of dollars and given up to 15 years in jail for selling and manufacturing fake IDs.

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