In our daily life we need money, either to be able to pay for our transportation from one place to another, to buy our pantry or to be able to buy ourselves a whim. Because there is this wide exchange of money throughout Spain, and in the European Union, it is not surprising that there is someone who tries counterfeit banknotes in order to be able to acquire things with minimal effort. And it is because there are more than 15 billion euro banknotes, there is the possibility that on some occasion we have to be in the presence of a ticket is fake.
Do we know how many counterfeit bills there are?
The truth is that by not being controlled we can only give an approximation, it is according to the ECB data, equivalent to about 670 thousand counterfeit banknotes, although in reality these were only those that the ECB was able to identify, as well as remove them from circulation.
But this last paragraph teaches us a very important point Why are there so many counterfeit bills in circulation? The truth is that no one would take a banknote to a bank knowing that it is false, then we can deduce that there are those banknotes in circulation because we do not know how to identify them correctly; It is then when one is given to us and we do not review it, when even we can fall into the trap of said bills.
Is there a way to identify a real bill?
Because there are many people who try to imitate and counterfeit the original euro banknotes, the government organizations in charge of issuing the banknotes have taken it upon themselves to install stricter controls on all signs of identification in order to be able to secure the real banknotes. However, there are still people who try to counterfeit the banknotes, and they succeed in a rather surprising way; However, we must accept that another error that exists is that on many occasions the users of the tickets do not know how to identify all the security signs to make sure of a ticket.
So in order to know that you do not get a false bill, and you do not know how to identify it, we bring you this short guide with tips to know how to identify counterfeit bills. Let's get started.
Tips to know if a bill is fake
• The first thing to consider in order to know if a bill is fake is to touch the bill; This security sign is classified as one of the primaries, since we all touch the money with our hands; the texture of an original banknote It is firm and also resistant, but if they managed to imitate the material of an original banknote very well, let's continue. There are some parts of the euro banknotes that present some reliefs identifiable to the touch, in this way if in general the false bill feels like the real one, we can identify it if we notice these reliefs, or not.
• Another of the banknote security signs They are the bands of short lines in relief, these are found on the left and right edges of the banknote, and are the reverse of it.
• To identify a counterfeit bill We can also use a visual inspection, in this case what we have to identify is that by putting a ticket up to the light we will be able to realize the following. On the left side of the bill we can find a “blank” space, when the bill is up to the light this blank space is filled with a drawing of an advantage, in addition to the value of the bill.
• In the case of some new bills as are the 5 euros we can also find the portrait of Europe and also the image of the mythical character that has given its name to the European continent.
• Another sign of visual safety What we can find is the security thread of the bill, the value of the bill must be engraved on it, so if the bill does not match, it is surely a fake. The word euro, or the euro symbol, must also appear on newer banknotes. So if you can't see these insurance security features, you are dealing with a counterfeit bill.
• Now, we have concentrated only on the part front of the bill, but we are not finished with the security signs that exist, and the ones that follow are based on turning the bill to identify the following.
• When turning the bill, the first thing we have to look for is a silver band on the right side of the bill; If this band is missing, the bill is definitely a fake. However, if this banknote has the silver ribbon you should look at the following, on this ribbon both the value of the same banknote and the euro symbol must appear, in the same way the hologram of Europe must appear, who is the mythological character.
• If you try verify a new ticket of 5 euros you have to take into account that there is another method of identification. In these banknotes, the figure that is in the lower left part has to be made with a bright tone, this tone allows the figure to have a variable metallic color between the shades of emerald green and dark blue.
These are identified as the main signs of authenticity of one euroHowever, it must be considered that the banknotes that belong to the new runs have been incorporated with the latest technology available in terms of security.
What are these technologies and how will we identify them?
The first thing we have to review from now on is that in the banknote front several short lines in relief have been included in the region corresponding to both the left and right edges; The purpose for which this new security sign was implemented is to ensure that even those with some type of visual impairment can identify these banknotes.
Another news that these banknotes include is that in the space in the bank that is located on the left side of said banknote there is a watermark from a window, together with the value of the banknote, as well as the portrait of the character from mythology; This watermark is the one that we can see against the light.
Another change that can be seen is that the banknote security thread in which the word euro appears now only the euro symbol appears. This has been changed in order to make it much faster and easier to identify the security sign; In addition, all the counterfeit bills that were made before this improvement only have the word euro, so they are bills that are practically useless, as long as we look at the security signs.
Embossed texture and shiny feeling that offers the metallic reflection in the figure of the banknote makes its appearance in the 10 euro note, as in the 5 euro note.
All the questions that have been analyzed here have the purpose of being able to identify counterfeit banknotes so that we are not victims of these falsifications; Despite this, it is possible that we doubt the authenticity of a banknote. If this is our case, we can go to the help of a financial institution to be able to clarify if the banknote we doubt is original or a forgery.
A very applicable advice when we find ourselves in situations in which it does not give us time to verify the authenticity of a banknote is that we base ourselves on touch in a more efficient and faster way; in this way we will not have the need to place the bill against the light or turn it over, so we can only take the bill, feel it, and if we identify an error when touching it we can, if we decide, reject the bill or we can also take the time to be able to verify the rest of the security signs.
A Dilma that arises when we identify a fake bill out of time it may be to use it or not, here it is very important that in order to support counterfeiting no longer affect more people, we remove said bill from circulation, that is, we no longer use it. In this way we will be able to support these banknotes to go out of circulation.
Now, if we have our own business, and because of this we are concerned about having a system to manage the banknote identification easy, it is possible that we use some devices that identify which are the counterfeits and which are original, in this way we will avoid many losses and we will also avoid spending a lot of time reviewing each of the bills. It should be noted that in order to be able to guarantee that the device works efficiently, it would be necessary to verify which are the quality systems so that it identifies counterfeit notes, and analyze how effective these systems are.
Identifying counterfeit bills Before they are still in circulation it will prevent them from affecting us and other people.