Wow! Pretty unsettling! Your example is exactly why I believe that the interpretation of the law that says an acknowledgment must be "attached" means that they must be stapled together is dumb. I don't think it's bad to staple them, but it clearly isn't enough. My loose certificates have miscellaneous information at the bottom that connect them to the document signed. The goal is for it to be very clear that if either of those documents is missing, something is wrong. On a Deed, for example, I write the APN, document date, etc. in the optional section.
Sometimes, even when a proper certificate is provided, if it isn't cross-referenced, I'll write in information onto the provided cert, such as the name of the document, date, etc. I also always make sure that the page with the signature has an indication that a notary cert is attached.
Sadly, there's no guarantee that all of our efforts won't be enough to prevent someone from trying to commit fraud. We can only do our best to make it as difficult as possible for them to get away with it.
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