Dutch police have arrested eight men on suspicion of identity fraud, forgery, and cybercrime in a nationwide operation targeting users of VerifTools, a fake-ID platform that investigators say generated forged documents for criminals around the world.
Police said the arrests were made on April 7 and 8 after investigators analyzed servers seized when Dutch authorities, working with the FBI, took VerifTools offline on August 27. According to the police announcement, the platform let users upload a photo, enter false personal details, and generate fake identity documents that could then be downloaded after payment and used to conceal a person’s real identity or bypass know-your-customer checks.
Dutch police said fake documents bought through the site were used in crimes including phishing and bank helpdesk fraud, and warned that identity fraud underpins a wider range of criminal activity. The investigation remains ongoing, with police saying the list of identified suspects continues to grow and that they are also pursuing other providers offering similar tools.
Data recovered from the servers showed 636,847 registered users between February 2021 and August 2025 and 915,655 documents generated between May 2023 and August 2025, police said. The agency said the platform was viewed as one of the largest providers of such services and estimated its turnover at more than €3 million in its final year online.
Police said the latest sweep targeted suspects ranging from heavy users to one-time customers. In addition to the eight arrests, nine other suspects were ordered to report to police, including two girls aged 15 and 16, while officers conducting searches seized electronic devices, cash, cryptocurrency, and some weapons or look-alike items. Some of the men arrested are suspected of being major users who generated dozens of documents, police said.
Citing the Dutch police statement, OCCRP said VerifTools has previously been linked to scam operations that used fake passports to deceive victims.
Read the police statement here
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