---
title: Altered or Forged Income Documents - What Requesters Should Watch For
description: What's easy to fake in income verification (PDFs, pay stubs) and what's not. How to reduce fraud risk when you need income information from applicants.
date: 2026-02-03
---
Altered or forged income documents are a real risk for anyone who relies on what applicants send. Pay stubs, PDFs, and screenshots can be edited with basic tools; bank-sourced data pulled through a secure connection is much harder to fake. Here’s what requesters should watch for and how to reduce risk.

## What’s easy to alter or forge

- **Pay stubs and wage statements** – Numbers, dates, employer name, and pay frequency can be changed in a PDF or image. Templates and editing software make it straightforward.
- **Offer letters or employment letters** – Same issue: documents that pass through the applicant’s hands can be modified before submission.
- **Screenshots of bank balances or accounts** – Easily doctored. They are not a reliable source of income.
- **Tax documents** – W-2s or tax return pages can be edited or fabricated. Unless you verify through the IRS or a verified service, you’re trusting the file you were sent.

When the only check is “does this document look plausible?” the bar for fraud is low.

## What to watch for (red flags)

- Inconsistencies between documents (e.g. employer name on pay stub vs. offer letter).
- Odd formatting, fonts, or layout that don’t match typical employer documents.
- Numbers that don’t add up (e.g. YTD vs. sum of pay periods).
- Documents that are only screenshots or low-quality scans instead of originals or clear PDFs.

Even with vigilance, document review cannot guarantee authenticity. It only catches obvious issues.

## What’s harder to fake

Income information that comes **directly from a bank or data provider** is different. The applicant doesn’t submit a file—they authorize a connection, and the data is pulled from the institution. They don’t get a chance to edit the numbers. Requesters see deposit history and patterns that reflect actual account activity. That flow is much harder to forge than uploading a modified PDF.

## What requesters can do

- Prefer methods that pull data from the source (e.g. [bank-based income reports](/learn)) over methods that rely only on uploaded documents.
- Use document-based verification as one input among others, not as the sole basis for a decision.
- Look for providers that use secure, read-only connections to banks and do not store login credentials.
- For more on fraud risk by method, see [fake pay stubs and what’s harder to fake](/blog/ways-to-spot-fake-pay-stubs) and [pay stubs vs. bank-based income reports](/blog/pay-stubs-vs-bank-income-reports).

Understanding what's easy to alter versus what comes from a verified source helps organizations choose income verification methods that reduce exposure to forged income documents. See also [ways to spot fake pay stubs](/blog/ways-to-spot-fake-pay-stubs) using PDF metadata, or [view pricing](/pricing) to get started with bank-based reports.

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## Related articles

- [Ways to Spot Fake Pay Stubs](/blog/ways-to-spot-fake-pay-stubs) — Checking PDF metadata and visual red flags
- [Fake Pay Stubs and What's Harder to Fake](/blog/ways-to-spot-fake-pay-stubs) — How common document fraud is and which methods resist it
- [Pay Stubs vs. Bank-Based Income Reports](/blog/pay-stubs-vs-bank-income-reports) — Speed, cost, and fraud risk side by side