8 ways to spot fake money before you get stuck with the loss

SALT LAKE CITY — Every week, thousands of dollars in counterfeit money gets turned into the Secret Service in Utah.  Counterfeiting used to take skilled printers using large presses.  Today, criminals use inkjet printers, scanners and computers.

“About 85% of the counterfeit is produced with computers,” explained Bill Bishop, the resident agent in charge for the U.S. Secret Service’s Salt Lake City office.  “The digital technology has come so far, pretty sharp images.

If you’re having a yard sale, or you’re planning to sell stuff online, here are five ways to spot funny money before you get stuck with the loss.

COLOR CHANGING INK

Look at the number in the bill’s lower right corner.  It’s printed in optical-variable ink, or color shifting ink.

“Very good security feature that’s easy to access,” said Bishop.  “You look at the bill, you shift it and you see the color shift.”

On newer authentic bills, you’ll see the denomination number’s color shift from green to copper.  For the older bills, it changes from green to black.

WATERMARK

Hold the bill up to a light.  You should see a face appear just to the right of the face in the bill’s portrait.  They need to match.

Bishop held up a $100 bill.

“This is Franklin in the watermark and it should match the portrait, which is Ben Franklin,” explained Bishop. “If this is Hamilton, that watermark should be Hamilton.”

The watermark is a defense against bleaching.  Some counterfeiters will bleach genuine money with household chemicals to remove the ink.  They’ll then print a higher denomination on the bleached paper.  Bleached bills are harder to detect, because they feel real.  But, if the watermark portrait on a hundred dollar bill turns out to be Alexander Hamilton’s portrait, then you know the bill is a bleached $10 bill.

SECURITY THREAD

While you’re holding bills to the light, look for a security thread.  It’s a thin strip embedded in the bill that runs from top to bottom.   On it, you should see USA in microprint, followed by the bills denomination.

3D SECURITY RIBBON

The newest hundred dollar bill has an extra feature, a 3D security ribbon.  Just shift it slightly, and you’ll see the blue 100s in the ribbon move up and down.

RAISED INK

On every bona fide bill, you’ll find raised ink.  The U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing uses intaglio printing, a process that creates fine lines around the portraits and in the borders.  You’ll feel it when you run your fingers across the print.

“It gives it a 3D feel to the bills,” said Bishop, “and, you’ve probably noticed when you pick up the bill, the edges have kind of a ridged feel, almost like a finger print.”

PRINT QUALITY

On fake money the print quality usually comes up flat, too.  You’ll likely see blurred edges on the letters and symbols.  Many images just aren’t as crisp and detailed as the real deal.

BLUE AND RED FIBERS

Embedded in every Federal Reserve note are tiny blue and red fibers.  Counterfeiters often try to mimic these by printing tiny blue and red specks on the paper.

“They’re actually separate fibers that are thrown in with the pump, mixed in with the pulp and they’re dried into the paper,” said Bishop.

PAPER QUALITY

The real money uses a blend of cotton and linen fibers that gives it a unique feel.  If you’re holding a bill that feels smooth like printer paper, then it’s probably funny money.