A counterfeit license plate identified by the sequence BRA49CC, which can be freely purchased online, was recorded 5,923 times in just 35 days on the highways of Espírito Santo, Brazil. This high number of detections, averaging 169 per day, indicates a serious issue with vehicular identification and the proliferation of illegal plates. The tracking was conducted using the intelligent security camera system managed by the state’s traffic department (Detran-ES).

The problematic design of the license plate was originally used on light vehicles until 2015, specifically for ciclomotores, when there was no national requirement for registration. Since the introduction of a national standard for license plates in the Mercosul format, which requires four letters followed by three numbers for vehicles, these decorative plates have become illegal. However, they continue to be sold online for prices ranging from R$ 20 to R$ 40, which poses a challenge for law enforcement and public safety.

The findings underscore significant concerns for traffic regulation and law enforcement in Espírito Santo. The frequent sightings of these counterfeit plates could facilitate various criminal activities, such as evasion of law enforcement and the perpetration of crimes using vehicles that cannot be traced back to their rightful owners. This issue calls for a more robust regulatory approach to online sales and improved monitoring of vehicle registrations to prevent misuse of such counterfeit items in the future.