Fake money - Watch out

[VenomX]

Last night I took my first ever fake bill. Its a newer $5 and its good. This thing is the right size, right cut, and also has the strip and watermark. The only thing wrong with it is that it feels thicker than a normal bill.

I worked outside last night and was getting lots of $5's for some reason. I was just holding them up to the light and looking for the strip and watermark. I remember that $5 because I took a second look when I felt it was thicker.

Its been like 5 years and I have caught every other fake handed to me. Whoever you are, you are good BUT I will catch your ass if you pass me another.

[jiarby]

Real counterfeiters make $100's not $5's . Must be junkies or kids!

[Broomjockey]

Real counterfeiters make $100's not $5's .

Not any more. They've learned. The score is higher with $100s, yes, but the risk is lower with $5s. You can pass a LOT of them, quickly, and it's hard to remember who passed a $5 because you get so many a day. With a quality fake like this, I'd print them up for a few months, to make sure they pass muster, and get the community paranoid, then switch to $20 or $50.

[VenomX]

Real counterfeiters make $100's not $5's . Must be junkies or kids!

I doubt it was a kid or junkie because this thing is good. Its the new $5 with the purple 5 on the back. It had the watermarks, the little strip inside, and the little gold 5's on the back. It was even the right size, and cut straight.

The only difference was that it felt a little thicker than normal but I have felt that before and tried the pen and it turned gold before, never black like this one.

It was slow last night but I must have taken in $400 to $500 in $5's last night, just for gas in 10 hours.

[Geek King]

I wonder how they're printing them cheap enough to turn a profit then. The issues with counterfitting coins, dollar bills, and five dollar bills has been the profit margin. That is worrisome.

[Broomjockey]

I wonder how they're printing them cheap enough to turn a profit then.

Like I said, they're probably doing it at cost to check the quality. They're likely to ramp up after a bit.

[EvilEmpryss]

Were the watermark and the strip for a $5? I've heard of fakes where they take a bunch of ones, bleach them clean, then print new denominations on top. Cashiers check and see a watermark and strip, but they don't think whether it's Washington or Lincoln or anyone else.

The process is known to thicken the paper, as soaking it in the chemicals loosens the bond of the paper.

[Ghel]

Huh. I had heard that there were counterfeit 5s going around, but I hadn't heard that they were that good. We haven't seen any here at the bank yet.

What we've heard is just as common, though we haven't seen any yet, is people taking the new 5s and washing them, so that they keep the strip and watermark, then printing them as 20s, 50s, or even 100s. Those, supposedly, are harder to spot because they're the right paper, and if you're not looking close, you don't see the wrong numbers on the strip or that the watermark is a different portrait. They also work with the pens because that's based on the paper, not the ink. Or so I'm told.

We're such a small bank that we hardly ever see counterfeits, and if we do, they're pretty obvious. I think the last ones we had came in were with the deposit from a bar about 3 years ago. $100 bill that was obviously made on a photocopier. You could tell as soon as you picked it up. And since it came in from a bar, there was no way of knowing which customer or employee had passed it. After that, we started giving away counterfeit pens to our businesses.

Were the watermark and the strip for a $5? I've heard of fakes where they take a bunch of ones, bleach them clean, then print new denominations on top. Cashiers check and see a watermark and strip, but they don't think whether it's Washington or Lincoln or anyone else.

Jinx

[VenomX]

Yes the strip is for a $5 and the watermark is the big and little 5's.
As seen here.

After looking at it more today, the paper just doesn't feel right. I had the same thought the night I took it but it did have the water marks strip so I took it.
Now I know better and will also use the pen.

I am going to ask my boss if I can try and see if the strip is real or not by trying to rip it out.

[Broomjockey]

The pen test is basically worthless, fyi. Those pens are just iodine, and react to the starch in the paper, turning black. It's not difficult or terribly expensive to get starchless paper, which is usually archival quality.

[crazylegs]

The pen test is basically worthless, fyi. Those pens are just iodine, and react to the starch in the paper, turning black. It's not difficult or terribly expensive to get starchless paper, which is usually archival quality.

Agreed.

I don't know what the security features on US banknotes are, but in the UK notes will flouresce the correct denomination under UV light in certain places, that's a bit harder to forge.

£5 notes are the most forged, who checks a fiver? People worry about £50 notes far too much for them to be a realistic proposition, every time I've seen them passed at least 2 cashiers will verify that it's a real note in pretty much every company I've seen them passed.

[VenomX]

The pen test is basically worthless, fyi. Those pens are just iodine, and react to the starch in the paper, turning black. It's not difficult or terribly expensive to get starchless paper, which is usually archival quality.

Yes I know but it worked on this one. So until they start using different paper thats what we have to go by...

[bean]

Thankfully we haven't gotten any fake small bills recently.

We've gotten plenty of the "bleached smaller bills reprinted as larger bills" type that pass the pen test and if you're not looking for the right strip, pass the "hold it up to a light" test. Generally they're bleached small bills that are reprinted as 50s or 100s. But you can't bleach the strip or watermark.

If I get anything above a 10 (20/50/100) I use the pen and hold it up to the light to check for the correct watermark and strip. That's all they expect us to do (my employer only asks us to do it on 50/100 bills, but I do it on 20s too). Older bills don't have the counterfeit features, which scares the hell out of me when I accept an 80s $100 bill.

Travelers checks scare me more though.

[Chromatix]

I wonder if counterfeiting would get easier or harder if coins were involved for the smaller demoninations? I know the US is still shy of even one-dollar coins, but I think there's scope for up to 5 dollars using current coin-making practices.

[XCashier]

I wonder if counterfeiting would get easier or harder if coins were involved for the smaller demoninations? I know the US is still shy of even one-dollar coins, but I think there's scope for up to 5 dollars using current coin-making practices.

I think we should also make the denominations different sizes, like they do in other countries. It'll be more difficult to pass a redone $5 off as a $50 if there's a noticeable difference in size.