If a wife opens an account and forges her husband's name on the signature card, has she committed forgery/fraud? What should a responsible bank or credit union do?
If Spouse A forges Spouse B's signature on a deposit account signature card, there certainly can be fraud and a form of identity theft involved if Spouse A then forges Spouse B's name in an endorsement and steals from Spouse B. There are a lot of ways in which the forgery can be used fraudulently.
Banks and credit unions are supposed to verify customer identity when opening accounts. That can involve requiring all joint owners to come to the institution to sign account paperwork and provide documentation of their identities using driver's licenses, for example, or taking other steps to avoid having fraudulent depositor signatures used.
If you are the spouse whose signature was forged, you should notify the bank or credit union of the facts at once, regardless of how you and your spouse deal with the problem. That will prevent the forged signature from being used against you later.
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If Spouse A forges Spouse B's signature on a 