Wrapped in Chinese paper, the small package contained a slender light blue gemstone box containing a beaded bracelet. But bracelets are cheap. The difference is hidden under a layer of foam: the scannable fake id.

The 19-year-old sophomore, exhausted by not being able to spend time with his older peers, organized a makingafakeid.com order in China for him and several of his Princeton peers, who used a fake id. Email address provided by a student. The companion said he also got it from other companions.

ID card fakes have been school decorations since around 1984, when the age to buy and openly possess alcohol was set at 21. However, don’t memorize old-school assets like more sophisticated older siblings or Photoshop. In the current global economy, students need to enter their ID.

Charge Rivera, JFK’s head of global mail, said the volume of mail from China has been increasing in recent years, while the authorities have almost always held parcels. From October 2013 to September 2014, a total of 4,585 fake IDs made in China were seized, with a large portion of them concentrated on undergraduate students. “Honestly, some of them look really good,” Mr Rivera said.

Brian Bell, a volunteer administrator at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, said scannable fake ids were hidden in everything from photo placement to tea sets, requiring careful scrutiny and sound judgment. For example: “How can someone send a $3 or $4 tea set to school?” From July to September, students may need a lot of school supplies.

What happens when a package is seized? You may only lose cash, but it will most likely be sent to DHS for “controlled shipping.”

The issue has become so troubling that Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White launched a public help campaign on campus in October with advance notice of penalties for using fake IDs. Despite driver license suspensions and fines or local administrative penalties, students are also at risk of fraud.

Aside from the fact that you’re sending character-related personal data and photos to China — “keep your hair flawless,” one supplier admonished customers — but you can also send cash via Western Union or MoneyGram.

The Cornell junior, who coordinated the purchase of scannable fake IDs for 30 students, said the payment was the scariest part because you “essentially sent $1,800 to a slot you’ll never get back.”

Buying individually can cost $120, but buying in bulk minimizes the cost. Some are now paying $60 for a couple (if it’s the last bouncer, you get two IDs), plus any time and risk of tagging a replacement coordinator. An NYU sophomore placed four orders on other fake id websites for $20 to $40 each, but had to eat through the cost of one order after his email account was closed.

It’s normal for providers to change email locations and sites to stay away from experts.

In this verbal communication business, client referrals are very important. A subreddit of the person-to-person communication site Reddit is a virtual intersection of Americans buying a fake id and counterfeiters advertising their products. Some even have customer service. Cornell backup packages were shipped out of some unacceptable locations and replaced. At least makingafakeid.com claims to offer “90-day free replacements” for seized IDs.