Though news of it has faded from the headlines, counterfeit notes continue to enjoy heavy circulation as reports of them cropping up are forwarded to police almost daily. Money minders at the Central Bank are responsible for the integrity of the dollar bill and this week they've stepped up counterfeit awareness efforts with a "Know your money" presentation. The sessions are facilitated by those who know the currency best; the pro's at De La Rue International who print our local dollar. Seven News attended the first in a series of sessions and we spoke to participants who told us what they learned.
Indira Craig reporting,
Alexander Hunter, Supervisor/American Airlines
Well, the seminar today was pretty good, ahm, they used the fundamentals of checking currencies. Basically you probably look, you use the feel look and tilt where like you feel the dollar note, you look at it, you tilt it and you check it probably under the UV light.
Indira Craig
What's the easiest way to know a counterfeit money based on what you learned today?
Lavern Banner, Angelus Press
The colour, for instance. If you don't have the light, the colour. The colour is a little dull, and the feeling is different and not only the feeling, sometimes I even smell it. The real money has a smell, the counterfeit has no smell. I am dealing with cash for a very long time, and I used to say I know my money but today I see the difference. A lot of things weh I neva know, I get to know today.
Indira Craig
Those are just some of the methods of detection picked up by participants who attended this morning's session. With the latest crop of counterfeiters working double time in an attempt to one day perfect their craft, those at the Central Bank have had to double up their awareness efforts to make the public better at counterfeit detection. Dispelling the notion that counterfeiters are getting closer to breaking the money code is Marilyn Gardiner, Manager of Banking and Currency. She said that while the new crop of notes is admittedly deceptive at first glance, the quality is sub-standard and easy to detect.
Marilyn Gardiner
At first glance, if you are not paying attention, probably you can say they are deceptive but anything would be deceptive if you are not paying attention. At second glance, you can see immediately that those notes are not as deceptive as the counterfeiter would want them to be. They will be, any note will be if we don't pay attention. That's why it's important for us to know our notes.
Indira Craig
And knowing our notes was a two-part lesson. Learning the many features of our money was the first part and how to spot for differences was the second. But while knowledge makes the eye and hand tools for detection, one formula that can be universally applied is the feel, look, tilt and check rule.
Tim Jones, De La Rue International Ltd.
Touch or feel, first time you are handling a note you may think, oh there is something strange about this, let me think, go a bit further. Next stage you look, you hold it up to the light, you look at some of these features I've just mentioned, then tilt. There are certain other features, particularly in the higher denominations. You have holograms and foils, which, when you angle them you can see changes in the images within the, or the shininess of these particular features. And finally check, using these extra devices such as lenses and lamps.
Indira Craig
So while a magnifying lens, ultra-violet light and ultra-violet ink are the best ways to detect fakes, jones said that for those who find the detection tools impractical, there are two features to look for that can easily be detected by the untrained eye.
Tim Jones
The untrained eye can look at things like the general quality of the print, which is never to the same crispness and sharpness of the genuine notes. Specifically, one can look for what we call a see-through feature, which is we have an image on the front of the note which matches exactly with the image, or a similar image on the back and the two marry together and create a complete image. They will fit perfectly on a genuine note and, chances are, not so well on a counterfeit note.
Indira Craig
And if these lessons are imparted effectively, the vigilance of regular money handlers will soar, sending the counterfeiters back to the lab. What they will come up with next time is now the question.
On Wednesday, 31st July, the two final sessions will be held for the general public at the lecture hall of the Central Bank of Belize Headquarters building. The first session gets underway at 10:00 in the morning and the second at 2:30 in the afternoon. The general public is asked to call in to the bank to reserve a seat as seating will be assigned on a first come basis in order to avoid the expected rush of participants.