In mineral exploration

Mineral exploration

Mineral exploration is the process of finding ore to mine. Mineral exploration is a much more intensive, organized and professional form of mineral prospecting and, though it frequently uses the services of prospecting, the process of mineral exploration on the whole is much more involved.-Stages...

, salting is the process of adding gold or silver to an ore sample to change the value of the ore with intent to deceive, cheat or defraud any person. In the US state of Arizona

Arizona

Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...

 it is a class 6 felony

Felony

A felony is a serious crime in the common law countries. The term originates from English common law where felonies were originally crimes which involved the confiscation of a convicted person's land and goods; other crimes were called misdemeanors...

. A famous example of salting is the former Canadian gold company Bre-X

Bre-X

Bre-X was a group of companies in Canada. A major part of the group, Bre-X Minerals Ltd. based in Calgary, was involved in a major gold mining scandal when it was reported to be sitting on an enormous gold deposit at Busang, Indonesia...

, which salted its core drill samples, leading investors to believe that they were in possession one of the largest gold reserves ever discovered.