Fake Notes From ATMs -Beware!!!

Sources in RBI said that it had conducted a study is association with the police departments of different states on the number of detections of counterfeit notes.The study revealed that about 99 per cent of counterfeit note cases pertained to big branches in the metro or industrial urban areas. Again over 80 per cent of this 99 percent were detected in new generation private sector banks.The next time you visit an ATM to withdraw money, be careful as cases of ATMs dispensing fake notes are being reported from across the country. And a common refrain by customers is that the banks have turned their backs on them.

Alarmed by the complaints, the Reserve Bank of India has made it mandatory for the currency chest branches of all banks to have verification and sorting machines. Some of the ways that would the customers to get rid of this trap is as follows:

Tactile Clues
In a Rs 500 note, a circle-shaped mark in intaglio on the left of the watermark window helps the visually impaired identify the denomination. The shape varies with the denomination: Rs 20, vertical rectangle; Rs 50, square; Rs 100, triangle; Rs 1000, diamond. This feature can be imitated, but in a poor fake, the shape of the mark could be wrong.

Intaglio Painting
Mahatma Gandhi’s portrait, the RBI seal, the guarantee and promise clause, the Ashoka Pillar Emblem on the left and the RBI Governor’s signature are all printed in intaglio, that is, raised print. If you gently run your fingers over a genuine note, you can feel the raised print. Since intaglio printing is prohibitively costly, counterfeiters have not been able to reproduce it.

Security thread
A readable security thread lies to the left of the Mahatma’s portrait. On the obverse, it’s discontinuous with the inscriptions ‘Bharat’ (in Hindi), and ‘RBI’. On the reverse, it’s fully embedded with the two inscriptions appearing alternately. A real note should have a security thread that is silver and woven. In a fake, the thread stands out unevenly on the obverse and on the reverse, the colour is blackish.