Here is a list of eight ways to tell if a bill is real or counterfeit:

rag paper

Basically, the only counterfeit bills which a counterfeit detector pen will detect are those printed on regular wood-based printer paper. And it does not even detect those 100 percent of the time, since there are easy chemical solutions to get around the pen detection test.

• Color-shifting Ink.
• Watermark.
• Blurry Borders, Printing, or Text.
• Raised Printing.
• Security Thread with Microprinting.
• Ultraviolet Glow.
• Red and Blue Threads.
• Serial Numbers.

What color does a counterfeit pen turn? A counterfeit pen reacts to the starch found in most types of paper. Genuine U.S. currency is printed on paper that does not have starch. Therefore, if the bill is genuine, the ink will turn yellow and if it’s fake, the ink will turn black or dark blue.

ATMs have a mechanism that reads money. It will automatically reject counterfeit and mutilated bills. Also, many ATMs are serviced directly by armored car services, so the cash comes directly from the federal reserve. There is no chance of ever getting a counterfeit bill from an ATM.

Under federal law, the use or attempted use of counterfeit currency is illegal if the person has the intent to defraud the recipient. A conviction for the offense carries up to 20 years in prison and a fine. All of these crimes require that the prosecutor prove that the defendant acted with the intent to defraud.

Could a Bank Unknowingly Hand You Fake Money? As stated above, banks have rigorous security measures in place to spot and confiscate counterfeit money. As such, the likelihood of receiving counterfeit bills from a bank or ATM is almost negligible.

Will my bank replace fake money? Banks can, at their discretion, replace fake money received by their customers, but they are unlikely to do so. It makes little difference where the counterfeit came from — a store, an individual, or an ATM. In most cases, you’ll end up writing off the loss.

Some vending machines use ultraviolet scanners to measure the glow from a bill to verify it is real. Real currency bills are also printed using magnetic ink. Many vending machines also use a magnetic reader to detect the magnetic signature of a bill to ensure it’s real and determine its denomination.

Contact your local police department or United States Secret Service field office. These numbers can be found on the inside front page of your local telephone directory. Write your initials and the date in the white border areas of the suspect note. Limit the handling of the note.

Hold the note to light to see an embedded thread running vertically to the left of the portrait. The thread is imprinted with the letters USA and the numeral 100 in an alternating pattern and is visible from both sides of the note. The thread glows pink when illuminated by ultraviolet light.

The dashed blue strip to Ben’s left? Not a printing goof. It’s actually part of a security feature designed to help tell real $100s from fake ones. In fact, the blue ribbon has nothing to do with printing — it’s actually woven onto to the paper.

The aesthetic cost of counterfeit-proofing. Like virtually every other aspect of currency design these days, the blue line is a security feature designed to foil potential counterfeiters. That’s no small matter with the $100 bill, which is America’s most widely counterfeited denomination.

The 1988 series $100 bills are worth around $175 in uncirculated condition with a grade of MS 63.