How to spot fake money

Thursday’s story of a Coeur d’Alene business owner whose customer used a counterfeit bill brought back not-so-fond memories of my day as a suspected felon 25 years ago. Yes, I passed a counterfeit bill — a $100, rare in our lives but appropriate on a one-day family excursion to Sea World. I missed all the fun, instead spending the day waiting in a cold park office for the U.S. Secret Service, then enduring (polite) interrogation while shivering in summer shorts. Luckily, I could prove I got the bill from my bank that morning, so they let me go — just in time to go home.

It was easier to counterfeit a bill then; modern currency security features better foil fraudsters. While there’s no foolproof way to spot all the tricks, the Federal Reserve Board and U.S. Treasury suggest looking for certain features, such as these for the 100, 50, and 20:

Portrait watermark — Hold the note to light and look for a faint image of a president in the blank space to the right of the portrait (visible from both sides).

Color-shifting Ink — Tilt the note to see the numeral (100/50/20 etc.) in the lower right corner of the front of the note shift from copper to green.

Security thread — Hold the note to light to see an embedded thread running vertically to the left (100 and 20) or right (50) of the portrait. The thread is imprinted with the letters USA and the amount and is visible from both sides of the note. The thread glows (e.g., pink for 100, yellow for 50, green for 20) when illuminated by ultraviolet light.

Microprinting — Look closely on a 100 to see the small printed text THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA on Benjamin Franklin’s jacket collar, USA 100 around the portrait watermark, ONE HUNDRED USA along the golden quill, and small 100s in the note borders. On a 20, the small text says USA20 along the border of the first three letters of the blue TWENTY USA ribbon to the right of the portrait, and THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 20 USA 20 in black in the border below the Treasurer’s signature. On a 50, the small printed text is FIFTY, USA, and 50 inside two of the blue stars to the left of the portrait; FIFTY is repeated within both side borders of the note; and THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA is in President Grant’s collar.

3D security ribbon (100 bill) — Tilt the note back and forth; the bells on the blue ribbon change to 100s as they move and those images move side to side. If you tilt it side to side, they move up and down. The ribbon is woven into the paper, not printed on it.

This list is not a complete guide. Keep in mind that bills still in circulation, but older than these designs, may look different. See detailed photos and descriptions by year and denomination at UScurrency.gov. And pay attention, lest you too spend your day a bit differently than planned.

Sholeh Patrick is a columnist for the Hagadone News Network who hopes one day she may get beyond the front gate at Sea World. Without the police escort. Contact her at Sholeh@cdapress.com.