The following post is from the Winnipeg Police:

“Be Aware

Due to recent incidents of local businesses receiving counterfeit bills (specifically $100 notes), Camrose Police Service shares the following information and tips on how to reduce the risk of being defrauded with counterfeit bills, what to do if you suspect counterfeit bills and what to do if you have received a counterfeit bill.

Tips

While larger bank notes such as $50s and $100s are the most frequently counterfeited, it is advisable to check all notes.

Avoid rushing transactions. Counterfeiters will often use busier times to pass counterfeit bills. Take the time needed to check the bills, especially if something seems suspicious.

Be particularly alert to someone asking to change a larger bill into smaller bills or making a small-priced purchase with larger bills.

The following information may assist in determining whether or not a bill is genuine.

Touch… the bill and feel for raised ink on areas such as the words “Bank of Canada” and “Banque du Canada”, the large number indicating the denomination and the portrait’s shoulders. Counterfeit bills often feel smooth all over.

Look…at the transparent window on the bill to ensure the window is clear and not a taped-on sticker. Also check the metallic portrait in the large window it should shift colours when the bill is tilted and the small metallic portrait should match the large printed portrait.

Hold the small, frosted maple leaf window up to a single-point light source, you should see a circle of numbers matching the note’s value.

The word “CANADA” in the transparent window should be transparent and feel slightly raised, and look for the small transparent maple leaves bordering the large window.

Flip…the bill to confirm that the metallic images and symbols in the transparent window are repeated in the same colours and detail on the other side of the bill.

Compare a suspicious bill side-by-side with one you know is genuine.

What to do if you suspect a bill may be counterfeit.

-Remain calm and politely refuse the potential counterfeit bill.

-Explain that you think the bill may not be genuine and ask for a different method of payment. Advise the person passing the bill to check the note with the police.

-Remember the person presenting the suspicious bill may be an innocent victim , unaware that they have been passed a counterfeit bill.

-Contact the police about the attempted transaction or if you have accepted what you think may be a counterfeit bill or is confirmed by a bank to be a counterfeit bill, turn it over to the police to prevent further fraud.

-Provide the police with as much information about the transaction and the person involved in the transaction. If the bill is confirmed to be real you will be given the bill back.

For more information on the counterfeit protection and training materials visit the Bank of Canada homepage at www.bankofcanada.ca.

The $100 bill in this photo is genuine and was used to demonstrate areas on a bill a person can check.”