Does this go much deeper than just cards?

[steve B]

I hear there are a lot of fake coins coming out of China lately.
But altering them has been with us probably longer than altering cards.
Same for Stamps, plenty of fakery and alterations, both fraudulent and well meaning.
Just have a look on the autograph side for that area. It may be worse than cards..

I'm not sure about memorabilia or comics, some are more complex objects and would be a bit harder to alter or fake. But if there's enough money I'm sure it happens. I know there are a few fake bicycles out there that are pretty basic but altered to appear to be more desirable.
Same with old cars.


This stuff is probably there in any hobby where there's money.

[glynparson]

Can’t believe I have to point this out but there is fraud everywhere there is money to be made. To think otherwise is incredibly foolish.

[PolarBear]

I've mostly collected coins so I understand the coin side of TPG pretty well. Without a doubt, there are coin doctors and fraud. Most of that centers around artificially toning coins with vibrant colors. An untoned silver dollar in MS65 may bring a couple hundred dollars but with attractive multicolored toning, a couple thousand.

And the TPG's probably aren't any better at weeding that out than they are weeding out doctored cards.