Counterfeit
Threats
As technology marches on so do the ways
in which a bank note can be counterfeited. What was once a highly
skilled endeavor only possible by those who had access to suitable
equipment, can now be accomplished rather too easily by anyone and
at the press of a button.
There are essentially two approaches
to producing a counterfeit :-
- Try and mimic the individual
workings of a banknote, ie litho , intaglio etc
- Reproduce the note using the commercial
half tone technique.
Individual
Working Method
This method requires a high degree
of skill from the counterfeiter.He/she will photograph an original
note using a graphic arts camera and a variety of filters in an
attempt to break the note down to it's component workings. This
can be a complicated and arduous process requiring a lot of hand
retouching to the films produced.
A printing plate will then be produced from each film and the printing
process begun.
The paper is passed through the printing press again and again with
each simulated working added each time, the printers ensuring that
a register between each of the workings is achieved.
Another challenge facing the counterfeiter is the ink colour selection,
with each colour being matched as closely to the original as possible.
HalfTone
Technique
Pictures and graphics in magazines,
etc, are reproduced by printing their half tone separations An original
picture is electronically scanned and separated out into its cyan,
yellow and magenta and black half tones. Half tone means that the
image is now represented by dots, the size of the dot indicating
how much particular colour is present. Cyan, yellow magenta and
black are known as subtractive primaries and all colours can theoretically
be created from them. In reality because of the limitations of the
separation process and ink impurities this is not the case, and
a black separation is also produced to provide colour corrections.
This mechanism is represented in the graphic below, a flower separated
out to its cyan, yellow, magenta and black components.
This process of colour separations
is fundamental to a number of counterfeiting techniques.
The Printed
Half Tone Counterfeit
In this method the half tone separations
from a scanner are written to film and then printed using their
appropriate colour, ie cyan yellow magenta or black.
Colour
Copier Counterfeit
A colour copier scans an original and
performs the separations, the separations are then transferred to
the paper using cyan, yellow magenta and black toners.
This type of counterfeiting is particularly dangerous because colour
copiers are widely available and no real skill is required for their
operation. Essentially you can press a button and have your counterfeit.
Because of the serious nature of the threat posed by colour copiers
many of the new security features emerging, especially the "shiny"
ones are aimed at preventing these types of counterfeits.
The colour copier manufactures are
also acutely aware the threat their machines pose. As a result most
copiers now incorporate anti counterfeit technology in an effort
to prevent misuse.
As a counterfeit deterrent measure
all copies made carry a unique code, allowing a copy to be traced
to a particular machine. This is useful for assisting authorities
determine where counterfeits have originated from.
Technology also exists to detect currency design elements which
causes deliberate malfunction of the copier in terms of its output,
or the shut down of the machine.
Computer
Printers
With the advancement of computer technology
it is a simple process to capture the image of a bank note and print
it out on a desk top printer. Again these printers all create their
images by combining cyan yellow magenta and black inks.
While this type of counterfeit requires a degree of computer skill,
it is not rocket science. |
