The issue of counterfeit art in the market is a constant concern.

• Galleries and auction houses are hesitant to showcase fake artworks due to the potential harm to their reputation, insiders reveal.
• Dealers often discuss their "intuition" when they suspect a piece may be a forgery.
• Last year, in Toronto, over 1,000 fake artworks, believed to be created by the late Canadian artist Norval Morrisseau, were confiscated as part of an ongoing investigation.

Stories about art forgeries are not as widely known as you might assume.

According to lawyer Helen Mulcahy, a partner at legal firm Fieldfisher who specializes in art and fraud, the art market is vulnerable to fraud.

Mulcahy stated in a video call with CNBC that "reputation in the art market is crucial, and many people avoid going to court due to the embarrassment factor for a buyer."

Mulcahy advises wealthy clients on the specific details they need to consider when purchasing art, such as attribution and provenance, which can be found in exhibition records, auction catalog references, certificates, or other documents.

Provenance should include details about the medium, dimensions, and date of creation. However, it's not always the artist who created the work, it might be attributed to the artist, school, or circle of artists. Provenance can have multiple levels, and checking it can be more challenging on the secondary market, where works are resold.

Buyer beware

An artist and dealer who worked at Christie's for over a decade, Tom Rooth, stated that he frequently encounters fakes. "I see them all the time. You can easily spot fakes on an auction website now," he said in a phone interview with CNBC.

Working for an auction house was a great training because it involved receiving emails with images of paintings from people seeking valuations. As Rooth explained, "You become accustomed to viewing images on a screen and determining whether they are authentic works of art."

Jack Roberts, a contemporary art dealer, shared the sentiment that it is important to prove the authenticity of an artwork before assuming it is legitimate. When purchasing, any small detail that feels "not quite right" would prevent him from buying.

If there are high-value items such as art, fashion, or jewelry involved, there will be individuals attempting to fraudulently make money, according to Roberts. Additionally, if an artist is prolific and has a significant market, the likelihood of fakes increases, he stated.

Adam Szymanski, an art advisor and researcher from Toronto, Canada, stated that while the art industry conducts a lot of research to verify the authenticity of works during transactions, there are still many inauthentic pieces that circulate, especially among deceased artists. He shared this information with CNBC over the phone.

Gary Lamont, who oversaw the production of more than 1,000 forged paintings by Norval Morrisseau, was arrested and sentenced last year in Ontario. The criminal profits made by Lamont and others could be as much as $100 million, according to a report by the Smithsonian Magazine.

Morrisseau's art market was affected by the scandal, as his pieces typically sell for $40,000, but Riopelle's comparable works sold for over $1 million in November.

No one wants to buy inauthentic work due to the fear in the market, as Szymanski explained. People are perplexed.

'Sensational stories'

LAPADA's chief executive, Freya Sims, stated that while she has encountered forgeries in both museums and private collections, their occurrence is less frequent than one might assume.

She revealed to CNBC via email that the stories that get published are either sensational or involve large sums of money changing hands, but in reality, it's not worth investing time into creating something of low value.

"When a generalist dealer sells something from a more specialized field, mistakes can occur," she stated. LAPADA, along with other organizations, hosts fairs where items are authenticated, evaluated for condition, and properly labeled before being displayed, Sims explained.

In the 18th century, "The Massacre of the Innocents" by Peter Paul Rubens was mistakenly cataloged and attributed to Jan van den Hoecke. Sotheby's later identified it as a Rubens and sold it for $76.7 million in 2002, setting a record for the highest price ever paid for an Old Master painting at auction.

"An artist's attributions may shift over time, and it's not always because of a forger; it could have been a past specialist who incorrectly described something," Sims stated.