The situation has only grown worse in the past few decades; with minimal computer skills a person can produce a mezuzah mirroring halachic standards so closely that only a skilled and experienced invesitgator could uncover the forgery.
Two cases in the past decade stand out as examples. In one instance, an unscruplous "scribe" photocopied the mezuzah text onto parchment. The number of pieces produced is estimated to exceed several million and unwary dealers sold them as genuine hand-calligraphed, halachically valid items.
Not long after, a group of G-d fearing men were caught writing mezuzahs, following strictest halacha, except for one crucial point--these men were G-d fearing Muslims and not Jews. The product of their efforts, no matter how perfectly written, were not halachially acceptable, though unwitting dealers sold them as such.
For all its holiness, STaM is in many ways just like other consumer products. Just as one would not buy a major ticket item out of a street vendor's trunk, one should not buy STaM without knowledge of the source. If your dealer does not know from who wrote the STaM he sells or is unwilling to reveal the name, it might be safest to reconsider your choice of vendor.
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