3 replies to this topic

[lalaji]

I am wondering how hard for a fake diamond to be printed with a laser inscription and pretend to be a real one? People always recommend to search for diamond with the inscription to protect ourselves from fraud, but it seems to me that it is a pretty easy thing to get around.

Where I am coming from is a discussion with a friend, who said that once I bought a diamond. I can go to a jewelery shop for setting. I can leave my diamond with the shop and pick it up later with no worry because the inscription will help me to identify my stone. My point is, IF that jewelery shop want to replace my diamond for a fake, they can print the inscription on a fake diamond and replace mine too.

Am I thinking too much?

[denverappraiser]

As a way of recognizing your particular stone, an inscription is pretty safe. People often think it’s a means of ‘guaranteeing’ that the grading is correct and that there’s no important additional information worth considering, and it doesn’t do this but it does serve as a reliable serial number. Laser inscription equipment is expensive and few jewelers have it. Realistically it makes no sense to counterfeit inscriptions as a way of stealing diamonds and I don’t think there has EVER been a case of this, at least not one that’s gone to court and therefore in the public record.

It’s also worth noting that your risk of having a jeweler steal your stone while in their possession for setting is really quite low. FAR greater is the risk that they will damage the stone, that they will simply do a crappy job of setting it and it falls out later or that someone robs the store while they have it. An inscription does nothing to protect you from these. Use jewelers that have insurance against theft, fire, etc and get an independent inspection after the work is complete. Many people also consider buying an insurance policy that covers an assortment of perils, including theft by an unscrupulous ‘jeweler’.

[jan]

I would make sure that it is a legitimate GIA lab report number first.
You can use:
http://www2.gia.edu/...check/index.cfm

[LaurieH]

The inscription can help you ID your own stone, but so can the plot of the diamond. No two diamonds are ever alike, and generally, if a diamond is over a carat, the GIA certification will be a full cert, and have a plot. Then you can look at the type and location of inclusions in the diamond and compare it to the plot and key on the cert. Because of this, not all diamonds over a carat are inscribed, but many that are under a carat, which are given a half-cert/dossier, often are inscribed because they don't contain that plot, but rather a notation of the type of inclusion(s).

Nearly all jewelers are honest and they're not going to risk their business or waste their time trying to swap out diamonds. It's just not worth their while. There's always an unscrupulous jeweler here and there, but you're really talking one in a million! But that doesn't necessarily mean that you'll be able to find your inscription once your diamond is set, but don't panic! Happens sometimes that when the jeweler is setting it, he/she hasn't had it noted that there is an inscription, and it gets hidden under a prong or something. Always give your jeweler the chance to make it right and get it turned in the setting so that the inscription shows before you panic that they've swapped out.