Shops that handle large amounts of cash need to install special scanning machines to spot counterfeit currency, a senior official in the UAE Central Bank has said.
The warning came after two men reportedly tried to buy goods with a fake Dh500 note from a store in the Northern Emirates.
SAK, a salesman at a grocery store in Khorfakkan, said: "Two customers came to buy telephone cards using a Dh500 note.They asked me in advance whether I had enough change.
"When I casually inspected the note, I noticed that there was a slight difference in its colour." The salesman added that he was stunned to find himself holding what appeared to be a counterfeit note.
"[At first I could see] no difference in the quality of paper. However, I could see that the colour of the fake was not as bright as that of the real currency.
"Suspecting some sort of foul play, I noted down the customers' car number plate.
"After I thoroughly checked the note, I realised it was a smart colour copy of an original note.
"To clear my doubts, I checked the note in the ultraviolet sensitivity adjuster, and the scanner started beeping. The fake looked like a scanned copy of a genuine currency note," SAK added.
However, the two men returned a few minutes later and asked to exchange the note with another.
"They said they gave the fake note by mistake. Since we did not incur any loss, the matter was not reported to police," said SAK.
Fahd Al Hosni, assistant executive director of the UAE Central Bank, said all incidents of fake currency should be reported to police.
"The UAE has about Dh23 billion worth of currency notes in circulation," he said. "The dirham is a very strong currency with many security features, [but] any currency can be copied using a scanning machine [or colour copier] on commercial paper." He said the only way to tell the difference was to use an ultraviolet scanning machine.
"We don't have [a big] counterfeit currency problem here because we have advised all banks, money exchanges and commercial establishments handling big amounts of cash to install ultraviolet scanning machines," said Al Hosni.
The machines can be bought for about Dh800.
Explaining how the system works, PA Joseph, an engineer, said: "There is a fluorescent watermark on real notes that is not visible to the naked eye.
"It becomes visible only when the currency note is held under the machine.
By VM Sathish
© Emirates Today 2006
