An important rotor fault, which can lead to catastrophic failure if undetected, is fatigue crack in the shaft. The cracked rotor problem received the first attention in 1970, since when the interest among the researchers started. Vibration behavior of cracked structures, in particular cracked rotors, has received considerable attention in the last two decades. The problem of damage and crack detection in structural components has acquired important role in recent years. However, the studies are mainly dealt with single crack. If the structure is cracked in at least two positions, the problem of crack sizing and location becomes decidedly more complex. Relatively few authors have addressed the multi-crack assessment for structures. The objective of this present study is to summarize the different studies on double/multi-cracks and to note the influences, identification methods in vibration structures such as beams, rotors, pipes, etc. And thus this paper brings out the state of the research on multiple cracks effects and their identification. © 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.