The 29 year old hired a yacht near Dorset last summer using the
fake certificate. The conditions of hire stated that she needed to
have a Marine and Coastguard Agency (MCA) Yachtmaster certificate
in order to hire the vessel.
The woman found an image of such a certificate on Facebook. She
downloaded the image, doctored it and produced it, claiming it was
a photocopy of a genuine certificate she had earned.
Though the certificate was accepted at the time by the yacht
hire firm, it was later found to be a forgery.
The MCA investigated the incident alongside the Marine Unit of
Dorset Police, and the woman in question turned up at Bournemouth
police station to be questioned.
She was cautioned under the Fraud Act and released. A statement
said that no further action had been taken because the yacht hire
was paid for and the boat was returned undamaged.
"Seafarers should never publish copies of their certification on
the internet," said Captain Andrew Phillips of the MCA Enforcement
Unit. "If you have already done so then you are strongly advised to
remove them immediately. Having the document on the internet allows
them to be copied, and then abused."
