A Brief Review on Invisible Ink: It’s Various Types and Examination Methods

The analysis of ink in forensic examination has come up as a great challenge. There are a number of techniques and processes available for ink forgeries. Some of them are tricky but routinely practiced to commit crimes related to deeds, bills, cheques, will, contracts and certain other financial documents. Invisible ink or magic ink is one of the modern technology widely used for committing financial forgeries. It is of two types, erasable ink and disappearing ink. Disappearing ink fades away without leaving any trace after few hours upon exposure to CO2 (any other acid) in the air. Another type of ink is erasable ink which can be easily removed by certain rubbers incorporated in each pen. The present review represents the type, nature and different properties of invisible ink. Different techniques used to decipher these invisible inks are mentioned.