How to Identify Counterfeit Bills

Counterfeit money has been with us throughout history since the first forms of currency were
introduced to society.

Counterfeit money differs from genuine currency in a variety of ways, and if you familiarize
yourself with the differences, you will better your chances at spotting counterfeit bills if you
should ever come across one.

First of all, if you suspect you are in possession of a counterfeit bill, examine the banknote
carefully. Compare the bill in question with a real bill of the same dollar amount and printing
series. Certain series of bills can have different features and pictures on them depending on
what year the currency is from.

Be sure to pay close attention to the printing quality and paper material of the bills you are
analyzing. Remember that you are looking for anything that looks different compared to real
banknotes.

There are several factors to consider when trying to identify fake bills from real currency:

Portrait:

The pictures on real currency looks authentic and sticks out against the background. The
portrait on fake bills usually looks flat and dull in color. Details blend into the bills artwork, and
are often too dark or blemished.

Federal Reserve & Treasury Seals :

On real bills, the logos of the Federal Reserve and Treasury seals look very distinct and look
sharp and clear. Counterfeit versions of the seals could appear uneven, dull, or have broken
saw tooth points.

Border:

The fine lines in the border of a genuine bill are clear and unbroken. On counterfeits, the lines
in the outer margin and scroll work may be blurred and not clear.

Serial Numbers :

Authentic serial numbers are unique in style and are evenly spaced. The serial numbers are
printed in the same color of ink as the Treasury Seal. On fake bills, the serial numbers could
have different colors or shades of ink as compared to the Treasury seal. In addition, the
numbers could be unevenly spaced and disjointed.

Paper

Genuine currency paper has tiny red and blue fibers embedded throughout. Counterfeiters try
to duplicate the fibers by printing them throughout the lines on the paper. However, under
close inspection it will show that on counterfeit bills, the lines are printed on the outer layer of
the fake bills and are not ingrained into the paper. On lesser quality fake bills, a counterfeit
pen can reveal the paper of the bills to fraudulent .
 Why People Lie:
People resort to lying for so many different reasons that it’d be impossible to list them all.
However, of the most common motives for telling lies, avoiding punishment is the primary
motivator for both children and adults. Other typical reasons include protecting ourselves or
others from harm, maintaining privacy, and avoiding embarrassment, to name a few.

How to tell if someone is lying

Avoiding Punishment

“I thought I was only going 55 miles an hour officer” claims the driver speeding at 70 mph. “My
wristwatch stopped so I had no idea that I got home 2 hours after my curfew”, says the
teenager. Avoiding punishment is the most frequent reason people tell serious lies, regardless of
their age, whether it be to avoid the speeding ticket or being grounded. In serious lies there is a
threat of significant damage if the lie is discovered: loss of freedom, money, job, relationship,
reputation, or even life itself.

It is only in such serious lies, in which the liar would be punished if detected, that lies are
detectable from demeanor – facial expression, body movements, gaze, voice, or words. The
threat imposes an emotional load, generating involuntary changes that can betray the lie. The
lies of everyday life where it doesn’t matter if they are detected – no punishment or rewards —
that lies are easily told flawlessly.

Concealing Reward or Benefit

In serious lies the falsehood is usually told to conceal the reward or benefit the liar obtained by
breaking a rule or explicit expectation. The curfew violator was able to stay longer at the party;
the speeding driver is rushing because he pushed the snooze button when the alarm went off.
The husband who claims the ringer on the telephone in his office must have been turned off
when he was ‘working’ late – in a hotel room with his girlfriend – will pay no price if his lie
succeeds. In each of these examples, the rule breaker decides before breaking a rule that he or
she will if questioned lie to cover the cheating. Sometimes the reward could have been achieved
– a high mark on an exam — without cheating but not as easily, it would have taken more effort
(hours of study in this example).

Protecting Someone from Harm

Protecting someone else from harm is the next most important reason why people tell serious
lies. You don’t want your friend, you fellow worker, your sibling, your spouse – anyone who you
care about — to get punished, even if you don’t agree with what the person you are protecting
did that put him or her in danger. It is not certain whether society approves of these lies. When
policemen refuse to testify against a fellow officer they know has broken the law, we respect
their motives but many people believe they should be truthful. Yet the terms we use – rat, fink,
snitch – are derogatory. Anonymous call-in lines exist so those who volunteer information can
avoid any loss of reputation or danger by informing. Do we have different standards for people
who take the initiative to inform as compared to those who inform when directly asked to reveal
information? I will reconsider this issue in a later newsletter when I write about children’s lies
and why we don’t want them to tattle.
Self-Protection

To protect yourself from being harmed even when you have not broken any rule is still another
motive. The child home alone who tells the stranger knocking on the door “my father is taking a
nap come back later”, has committed no misdeed that he or she is concealing; it is a self-
protection lie.

Some lies are told to win admiration from others. Boasting about something untrue is an
obvious instance. It is common in children, some adolescents, and even adults. If discovered it
harms the reputation of the boaster, but not much more than that. Claiming falsely to have
earned money for previous investors moves into the criminal realm.

Maintaining Privacy

To maintain privacy, without asserting that right, is another reason why people may lie. A
daughter answering her mother’s question “who were you talking to on the phone just now”, by
naming a girlfriend, not the boy who is asking her out on a date, is an example. It is only when
there is a strong trusting relationship, that a child would feel brave enough to say “that’s
private”, announcing the right to have a secret. Another topic I will return to in my newsletter
about trust.

The Thrill of it All!

Some people lie for the sheer thrill of getting away with it, testing their unsuspected power.
Many children will at some point lie to their parents simply to see if they can do it. Some people
do this all the time enjoying the power they obtain in controlling the information available to
the target.

Avoiding Embarrassment

Avoiding embarrassment is still another motive for some serious and many trivial lies. The child
who claims the wet seat resulted from spilling a glass of water, not from wetting her pants is an
example, if the child did not fear punishment for her failure, just embarrassment.

Avoiding embarrassment is relevant to many less serious lies that come under the rubric of lies-
of-everyday-life. Very often people lie to get out of an awkward social situation. They may not
know how to do it – “can’t get a babysitter” offered to avoid another dull evening and food.
“Sorry I am on my way out the door”, an excuse given by people who do not feel brave enough
to be truthful even to a totally unknown telephone solicitor.

Being Polite

Then there are the deceptions that are required by politeness — “thanks so much for the lovely
party” or “that color really looks good on you”. I don’t consider these to be lies, anymore than
bluffing in poker is a lie, acting in a play is lying, or the asking price not being the selling price.
In all of these instances the target does not expect to be told the truth, there is notification. But
the impostor is a liar, as is the con man, because they are taking advantage of our expectation
that we will be told the truth. More about this will be in my newsletter about the different
techniques for lying.
Do we really want to know if someone is lying?

In most cases, there’s no quick or easy way to detect deception and, even if there were, we
might not like what we discover.

So, while people often claim  to want to know the truth, there are many instances in which it is
more comforting to believe the lies. In these circumstances, we tend to ignore deception clues
and excuse otherwise suspicious behaviors to avoid the potentially negative consequences of
uncovering the lies we’re told.