Holograms and Hidden Images... How to Verify Counterfeit Bills?

[Asia Economy Reporter Eunbyeol Kim] As the environment for producing and distributing counterfeit bills becomes increasingly difficult, the number of counterfeit bills discovered last year reached an all-time low. However, the annual reported counterfeit bills still amount to 267. What are some easy ways to identify counterfeit bills?

The Bank of Korea states that to verify counterfeit bills, you should tilt the bill, hold it up to the light, and feel the texture of the bill.

First, for the 50,000 won bill, you need to check if there is a hidden portrait of Shin Saimdang when held up to bright light. Also, when tilting the 50,000 won bill, you should see different patterns appearing on the band-shaped hologram depending on the angle. On the band-shaped hologram to the left of the hidden Shin Saimdang portrait, the map of Korea, the Taegeuk symbol, and the four trigrams should appear alternately.

Additionally, when tilting the banknote, check if the Taegeuk pattern inside the exposed line moves up and down or left and right. This is also a method to identify counterfeit bills.

For the 10,000 won bill, first check if there is a hidden portrait of King Sejong when the banknote is held up to bright light. Also, when tilting the banknote, see if the map of Korea, the Taegeuk symbol, the number 10000, and the four trigrams appear alternately depending on the angle.

Both the 10,000 won and 50,000 won bills have raised printing on the images and numeric characters that you can feel by touch, which is another way to verify counterfeit bills.

According to the "2019 Counterfeit Bill Discovery Status" announced by the Bank of Korea, the total number of counterfeit bills discovered by the Bank of Korea or reported by financial institutions and individuals to the Bank of Korea last year was 267. This is 347 fewer than the previous year and the lowest since statistics began in 1998. This is due to the extremely restricted production and distribution of counterfeit bills and the establishment of an environment that allows early detection of counterfeiters.

Among the discovered counterfeit bills, the 5,000 won denomination was the most common with 115 bills, but this was a decrease of 156 bills (57.6%) compared to the previous year. The 10,000 won bills also decreased by 182 bills (65.7%) to 95 bills. The number of 50,000 won bills discovered was 47, similar to the previous year.

New attempts at counterfeiting also decreased. Of the 195 counterfeit bill serial numbers discovered, 52 were newly found, down 15 from 67 the previous year.

Counterfeit bills were discovered 88 times at the Bank of Korea and 165 times at financial institutions, mainly during the currency handling process at financial institutions. By region, 140 counterfeit bills were found in the Seoul, Gyeonggi, and Incheon metropolitan areas, accounting for the majority (84.8%).

The number of counterfeit bills discovered per one million circulated banknotes in Korea was 0.05, significantly lower than the previous year's 0.12. This is even lower than Japan's 0.12.

The Bank of Korea urged, "If you discover counterfeit bills, please report them immediately to the nearest police station or bank," adding, "This can prevent property damage and penalties caused by counterfeit bills." Under current law, compensation is not provided after receiving counterfeit bills, so caution is required.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.