Niagara Regional Police Service says there has been an increase in the number of U.S. counterfeit money circulating in the Niagara Region this fall.
“Since September, there have been 12 reported incidents of suspected counterfeit bills being passed in Niagara. The majority of the incidents occurring in the tourist district of Niagara Falls,” said the police service in a bulletin released Wednesday.
The counterfeit bills are $50 and $100 U.S. bills.
Fraud unit detectives say that employees, business owners, and members of the public should be vigilant when verifying U.S. currency from a consumer.
According to the U.S. Currency Education website, referenced by NRPS, the U.S. Federal Reserve notes have been designed to make them more difficult to counterfeit.
“This does not mean that older-design notes are not secure. In fact, security features in older-design Federal Reserve notes, such as watermarks and color-shifting ink, have proven to be so effective they have been retained and updated for use in newer-design notes,” it said.
It says to you can authenticate a U.S. $100 note issued between 1996 and 2013 by moving your finger along the note’s surface to feel for raised printing. You can also tilt the note to see the 100 in the lower right corner change from green to black. Or you can hold the note to light to see the watermark and security thread.
There are also red and blue security fibers embedded throughout the paper. There is microprinting within the numeral in the lower-left corner and in the left lapel of Benjamin Franklin’s coat. You may want to use magnification to better see the microprinting.
For $50 bills, see this webpage on the same site.
If you have been a victim of a scam and experienced a financial loss, call the Niagara Regional Police Service non-emergency number at 905-688-4111 and ask for “dispatch”.