Document fraud templates: A term fraud experts should know in 2025

Once upon a time, faking a document meant starting from scratch: scanning, cutting, pasting, layering in Photoshop.

Today, all it takes is the right file.

In today’s underground  document fraud economy, templates are the raw material of deception — the oil that powers serial fraud organizations and amateur first-party fraudsters alike.

Fraudsters can purchase, or sometimes even freely download prebuilt layouts that mimic anything from an American account statement, a UK utility bill to a Chinese business license. These files are known as document fraud templates.

Whether you’re tracking the latest fraudulent document submitted to your organization or assessing your overall document fraud exposure, understanding the fake document economy and the role of document fraud templates is step one.

Read on to learn how document templates are structured, where they’re being marketed, and why AI-powered verification is now essential in catching them.

What is a document fraud template? 

A document fraud template is “a digital file (pdf, jpeg/png, psd, doc, xlsx, etc.) copy of a real, officially distributed document that can be edited to create numerous fake versions”.

People using document fraud templates don’t need to create fake documents from scratch — they’re leveraging reusable files, designed to impersonate official layouts and speed up the process of making forgeries.

These templates usually include sample content (official-looking themes, logos, fields, charts or graphs, etc.) and often require only a substitution of personal data to become “usable.”

Unlike manual forgeries, document fraud templates are designed to scale. A single digital file can now spawn thousands of fraud-ready variations in a couple of minutes. Don’t believe us? Check out our whitepaper on serial fraud. 

And they’re hard to spot. They’re structured to mimic official formats so closely that even trained eyes struggle to spot the difference, and in many cases the fakes are undetectable by human eyes regardless.

To be fully transparent: Not all document templates are malicious. Businesses often use blank, “generic” templates for invoices, HR forms, payslips and more. What makes a template dangerous and fraud-ready is when it mimics official documents issued by an established organization without being officially distributed by that entity.

History of document fraud templates

The idea of using templates to create fake documentation is not new. For decades, forgers have manipulated real documents into reusable layouts.

In fact, Frank Abagnale Jr., the infamous conman portrayed in Catch Me If You Can, created forged checks by removing ink with chemicals and reprinting his own details, effectively turning real checks into templates using typewriters and copiers.

In the era of digital forgeries, what’s now changed is the precision, availability, editing speed and automation.

Editable files have replaced scanned paper, AI-based cloning tools can replicate exact typography and structure, and entire specialized marketplaces we call template farms now offer templates categorized by country, document type or use case.

Unlike a deepfake or a document image generated by AI (an issue that is quickly ramping up), templates reuse real-world layouts and branding, and even experienced reviewers can easily mistake them for legitimate files (especially when personal data is correctly formatted).

Core features of a document fraud template

While the format, structure, purpose, and production of templates can vary widely, all document fraud templates usually contain several core features:

• Editability. Templates are built for ease of modification. Text fields, logos, and personal details can be swapped with minimal effort – usually in standard PDF editors like Acrobat and Microsoft Word or free online options. Some also include:
  
  
  • Packaged fonts. 
  • Dynamic fields.
  • Step-by-step instructions to ensure edits blend seamlessly with the original layout. 
  • Little to no design or technological knowledge is necessary.

• Authentic visual elements. Templates embed real-seeming features. Some of the most common elements are:
  
  
  • Government or organizational logos
  • Energy consumption charts
  • Account numbers
  • Sample transactions
  • Watermark textures
  • QR codes

Fraudsters obtain exact fonts and field layouts from legitimate issuers, often fraud templating original, authentic documents freely available on the wider web.

• Modular design. The best templates are modular, allowing users to quickly and easily swap out logos or adjust address formats depending on region or submission target.
• Localized variations. Many document fraud templates cater to regional idiosyncrasies (like tax format in Canadian receipts or layout changes in EU bank statements post-Brexit). The best fraud template farmers brag about regular catalog updates, ensuring consistency with current regional standards.
• Built-in deception logic. Some of the more advanced templates (often provided by the “generator” type of template farms) include autofill fields or dynamic date calculations, enabling consistent fake data without the need for manual calculations.

How our threat intelligence unit researches specialized template providers

Our threat intel team exists for one reason: understanding the technology and systems that enable fraudsters to attack document-based systems.

We track, monitor, investigate, and research the fake document economy which is very much based on the selling of templates by specialized template farmers.

As template providers range from Telegram-based sellers to indexed web storefronts, we extract data from each and every farm we identify.

And each blog post we publish within our “threat intel” section is backed by research that includes template offering analysis, vendor monitoring, and behavioral mapping.

For example: Our OnlyFake and Doc Juicer investigations found how platforms shift business models and how similar backends are recycled across new domains. 

These aren’t one-off scams. They’re recurring ecosystems built on scalable and often automated document fraud template selling and distribution.

Threat intelligence stats on the document fraud templates

The scale and size of the document fraud template landscape isn’t just eye-opening, it’s industrial. As data gathering is a core part of our threat intel operations, here are some high-level stats based on our research and what these mean going forward:

Document fraud template stats gathered by our threat intel unit.

324,439 templates found 

This shows just how abundant document templates are. If there’s a document someone can fake, it’s probably already been templatized. Whether it's ID documents, account statements, legal documents (like birth or death certificates), or widely-used commercial documents like invoices, receipts and much more… The farmers are selling it.

64 document types catalogued

15 broader document categories, 64 specific document types…we continuously deal with all kinds of documents, both within actual production and our threat intelligence research. The most represented broad categories include:

• bank documents,
• ID documents,
• legal documents,
• utility bills,
• commercial documents (receipts, invoices, etc.),
• income confirmations (pay stubs, pay slips, confirmation letters),
• company documents (business licenses, certificates of incorporation)

While some of the most frequently offered document types include payment cards, account statements, energy bills, passports, invoices or pay slips, there’s a much wider spectrum of document templates available including more obscure document types like death certificates, medical reports, health insurance cards, 

230 area codes referenced 

Fraudsters don’t care about borders, and neither do template farmers. A template for any document, from any country — that is the ultimate goal of template farmers and fraudsters alike. We have already found templates related to virtually any world’s country or territory, and while some regions or countries are logically more “popular” when it comes to template offering (think countries like USA, UK, Canada, Australia or India), the coverage is truly global.

14,175 document issuers identified 

Tax offices, small town utility companies, large financial institutions, telecommunications conglomerates: the scope of impersonated entities spans all industries and use cases. This volume reveals how deeply template farmers study real document designs, showing that not even small businesses can consider themselves secure from template-farming operations.

Average price: $26.04 

Cheap enough to tempt amateurs, expensive enough to fund further document fraud template development. The barrier for entry into the world of document fraud has never been lower. And it’s not stopping any time soon. Traffic numbers suggest template farms can amass funds to further perpetuate their fraud enabling activity.

We also know template farmers actively structure their pricing to attract “wholesale” template buyers, aiming to actively cater to serial fraudsters or potentially indirectly contribute to the creation of yet more offshoot template farms.

In short, document fraud templates aren't side projects — they’re products in a highly scalable forgery-as-a-service industry. The more you buy, the cheaper it gets.

Conclusion

Document templates are not isolated, single-use products — they’re infrastructure. They enable plug-and-play fraud, reduce the barrier to entry, and scale deception across languages, sectors, and systems.. They’re the scaffolding of an entire underground economy.

Stopping this threat requires a structural approach.

Resistant AI’s document fraud detection software doesn’t read what a file says — it dissects how it was made. We detect layout reuse, cloning patterns, and anomalies invisible to the human eye.

We continuously see and research more templates, understanding how they evolve and how to stop them.

Want to see how fraudulent template detection works in action?

Scroll down to book a demo and learn how our AI can uncover even the most convincing forgeries — before they cost you.

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

Hungry for more document fraud template content? Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about document template fraud from around the web.

Is using a document fraud template illegal?

Using a document fraud template is illegal if it’s intended to deceive — whether that means submitting a fake utility bill for proof of address or inflating expenses with a forged receipt.

Using templates in this way can lead to serious penalties, including fines and prison time. Even possessing one (with the intent to commit fraud) can be a criminal offense under laws like the UK’s Forgery and Counterfeiting Act or US federal fraud statutes.

Numerous template farms often try to “prohibit” or “discourage” their customers from using offered templates for illegal purposes, claiming their “products” are restricted only to “novelty” use in popular culture.

However, the type of offering available within template farms and the level of anonymity under which they operate clearly indicates farmers are well aware of what kind of business they’re in.

What industries are most affected by document fraud templates?

Industries that rely on document-based onboarding or compliance checks are prime targets: 

• Banking
• Fintech
• Insurance
• Real estate
• Government services
• E-commerce. 

These sectors often use utility bills, receipts, pay stubs, bank statements and other official documents to verify identity, address, income, etc., making them vulnerable to forgeries created from editable templates.

Is there software that can detect document fraud templates?

Yes. Tools like Resistant AI’s document fraud detection software uses machine learning to detect structural anomalies, layout mismatches, and metadata inconsistencies common in fraud templates. Unlike rule-based systems, our solution can adapt to fraud developments and evolutions as they appear — even high-quality fakes that mimic real branding or formatting.

What is the most common document fraud template?

The most prevalent document type right now is bank documents, making up almost a third of the entire database. Whether it's account statements, account references, transaction confirmations or fake payment cards, we’ve found over 100k of templates related to financial institutions across the globe. To find out more, check out our article on spotting fake bank statements. 

Who is the most frequently imitated document issuer?

Organizations with a global reach and customer base dominate the document fraud template market. Airbnb is one of the most highly represented issuers.

The reason? Booking confirmations might often be used as a fake proof of address, a fake rental history documentation, fake income claim, or a fictional expense to claim reimbursement, etc…

The wide spectrum of use cases in financial crime and the global presence of Airbnb’s business makes their library of different booking templates (for any country at varying levels of accommodation expense) highly desired. 

What type of a company can be a target of template farmers?

As we explain in the article, template farmers don’t limit themselves to large, global and famous corporations when it comes to harvesting templates. A small city utility company, a medium-sized hospitality or car financing business… Any business can have their documents offered as templates.