The hustle and bustle of the holiday season is just what unscrupulous people look forward to because they know that it’s hard to keep close tabs on everything. From shoplifters to counterfeiters, the busy holiday shopping season can be a difficult one for business owners to remain vigilant at all times.
By way of example, the St. Joseph Department of Public Safety issued a warning online late this morning regarding counterfeit money being circulated in the city’s central business district. Here’s what they had to say:
Within the last week our department has received two complaints from local businesses of counterfeit money. Please be vigilant when accepting money and the following are a few ways to check for counterfeit money.
The Secret Service offers the below methods to detect counterfeit bills:
1.Hold a bill up to a light and look for a holograph of the face image on the bill. Both images should match. …
2.Looking at the bill through a light will also reveal a thin vertical strip containing text that spells out the bill’s denomination.
Typically, if your business accepts fake money there’s little you can do to recover the loss, so instruct your employees to be attentive to the prospect of fake money and to utilize other methods including special currency pens and information sheets from your financial institution on what to look for to avoid being on the hook for funny money.