As the easy method to identify a fake note is made public, fake bank notes are being used alarmingly frequently in Australia’s big cities.
Forged $100 banknotes are circulating in communities as money launderers and criminals buy expensive things advertised by vendors on internet marketplaces and then pass the notes on to unwary victims.
Authorities issue a warning that an increasing number of forgers are taking the identities of buyers of goods like motorcycles and computers and using bogus currency to defraud vendors.
According to a recent poll by the Reserve Bank of Australia, Australians are unlikely to examine their bank notes for inconsistencies since they have high levels of trust that fake bills will be taken out of circulation and low expectations of obtaining one.
According to the RBA, Sydney and Melbourne are the two cities where fake currency is most frequently detected. Last month, authorities uncovered fake $100 notes in the Northern Territory.
The Daily Telegraph stated that fake $50 and $100 notes were used to target a number of Adelaide businesses late last year, prompting South Australian Police to issue a warning.
Australians are asked to try to make a small tear in the corner of a suspected fake note in order to identify the physical distinctions between real and fake notes.
Dame Nellie Melba was a well-known opera singer, and General Sir John Monash was a distinguished civil engineer and Second World War military commander.
To limit the ability of counterfeiters to produce replicas, the RBA started issuing new bank notes in 2016. These notes have improved security measures.
The rate of counterfeiting per million banknotes has more than halved since the introduction of the new notes.
The Reserve Bank of Australia claims that Australia has a low degree of counterfeiting by global standards.