There are holograms, transparent windows and even raised ink, but even with those security measures, counterfeiters always seem to find a way around them. Nowadays, it can be very difficult to spot a fake bill.
Michael Boddy recently posted his high-end iPhone on Craigslist. When a buyer agreed to pay him $1,260 in cash, he set up a meeting on the street and the man handed over the money.
"It's dark, but it looked real, so I handed him the phone, came back in the house and I thought,'something just doesn't seem right,'” he explained.
A closer look at the bills showed they were fakes.
"The texture doesn't feel right, then I noticed the braille was missing. Then I looked at the serial numbers on the back and a lot of them were repeating, duplicates,” said Boddy.
And it's not just bigger bills. Fake fives were recently making the rounds in Ottawa, and made headlines locally in 2017.
The quality of some counterfeit bills is so good that if you're doing a quick transaction you might not realize they're fakes. A helpful tip to remember: Feel, look and flip.
First "feel" if there is raised ink.
Then "look." Move the bill around. Can you see colours changing in some areas, like the metallic symbols and images?
"You can touch the raised '10' (on the new $10 bill). You can tilt the note and see the eagle feather colours," said Manuel Parrerira with the Bank of Canada.
And finally, “flip.” In the large window, look at the metallic portrait. It should match the large portrait.
Boddy has handed over the fake money to police and says he'll now be a lot more careful accepting cash.
"Be careful selling your stuff. Crooks want to get it for free," he warned.
