Theft Despite its popularized glamour, theft of art and artifacts is the most severe and damaging form of crime in the museum. Infamous heists of iconic works such as the Mona Lisa feed the public imagination and provide ongoing fuel for an escalating glorification of crime in popular culture. Though theft may appear to be a straightforward crime against legal title, issues of legitimate ownership are complicated when museums, galleries, and governments are themselves implicated in unethical collecting or acquisition of objects.		Vandalism Vandalism is a crime that ranges from minor defacement of the possessions of others to the outright destruction of public property. While vandalism can explain some of the most shocking examples of museum crime, it is also a powerful tool for self-expression. As an effective ideological weapon, physical violence committed against iconic objects projects a very clear symbolic message about political, religious, or artistic values.
Forgery Forgery is the act of falsely making, altering, or imitating an object, document, or signature with the explicit intent to defraud and deceive others. Even the most perceptive museum curators are deceived by the staggering skill and ingenuity of forgers. The traditional motivations for forgery run the gamut from simple economic gain to ego-driven notoriety, and may even include personal vendetta. Examples of this crime move from clearly illegal acts of forgery to the more ambiguous practice of appropriation art.		Museum Responses Once acts of theft, vandalism, or forgery have occurred, cultural heritage institutions take steps to mitigate the damage and prevent similar acts from occurring again. Measures may include increased security, restoration of damaged objects, repatriation of contested artifacts, and the implementation of scientific analysis and comparative scholarship.