While an event may choose to print badges on a simple laser printer, this is not recommended except for the smallest events. Paper badges are easily duplicated, and therefore highly susceptible to fraud. It is quite tempting for an attendee to acquire one legitimate badge, then print copies on similar paper with a home printer, either for friends or for re-sale. With the features available in laser printers today, even advanced protection features can be replicated with relative ease. As a result, these false copies are quite hard to detect, especially by gate agents who are quickly scanning badges as attendees stream by, rushing to enter the venue.

Paper badges require plastic badge holders so they can be worn around the attendee’s neck, whereas professional plastic badges can be attached directly to the lanyard. Not only does this make the whole process more costly, it complicates the distribution process. And plastic badge holders provide yet another element that can be used by a fraudster to make it more difficult to detect counterfeit badges. Paper badges generally do not have the quality of the printing to allow a decent rendering of a staff member’s photo, which should be used for security reasons to verify that the correct person is carrying a valuable badge which allows entry to the venue. Plastic badge printers Make it very unlikely that a person is using someone else’s entry badge, which is highly likely with paper badges. And fortunately, obtaining professional plastic badges today is easier than ever with outsourced printing services like instantcard.net. Not only do these services make it hassle-free to obtain the required badges, but they are also extremely cost-effective.