In recent years, it has become much easier to acquire a new identity on the darknet. The Darknet provides users with unprecedented access to fake and stolen personal documents that are currently not worth as much as one might think.
Specialists from SafetyDetectives visited several underground marketplaces on the darknet and compiled the average cost of the documents required to start a new life with a completely new personality. While there is almost always an option to pay with currencies such as US dollars, many of the underground sites only accept payments in bitcoin (BTC). The cost of a brand new identity varies from country to country as it includes a new passport, driver's license, birth certificate, diploma, financial data and counterfeit money.
The average cost of a new personality, depending on the country, is $ 2048. Living standards differ from country to country, and the cost of acquiring fake documents depends on many factors, including the difficulty of obtaining the documents, the source of the data , the authenticity and the perceived value of the standard of living in the country that allegedly issued the documents.
The average cost of acquiring a new identity in countries is:
- Australia - $ 4294;
- UK - $ 3253;
- Europe - $ 3051;
- USA - $ 13.051;
- Canada - $ 3038.
Experts noted that passports advertised as "registered", "genuine" and "capable of being verified" were more expensive. The simplest fake passports usually cost the buyer as little as $ 10. The average cost of a genuine passport purchased on the darknet is:
- Australia - $ 745;
- Canada - $ 745;
- Europe - $ 750;
- USA - $ 850.
Although the average price of a European passport on the dark web is $ 750, each country has its own set of factors that affect the cost of counterfeit documents. According to experts, a fake Norwegian passport ($ 800) will cost the most, followed by Switzerland ($ 764), the Netherlands ($ 745), Germany ($ 745), France ($ 745) and Spain ($ 690).
