Americans have once again strengthened the dollar's security
At the end of 2008, the US will introduce a new $100 bill into circulation. Authorities promise that one of the world's most common banknotes will receive new, more reliable protection against counterfeiting. The company Crane, a leading manufacturer of paper products and stationery, has received a government contract worth $46 million to create a new security thread for the $100 bill. According to experts, the new security thread, made using microprinting technologies, will be able to effectively protect the banknote from counterfeiting.
The authenticity of the $100 bill currently in circulation is confirmed by a thread glowing under ultraviolet light with the inscription 'USA 100'. The features of the new security thread will allow the printed image to 'move' across the bill: when the bill is tilted up and down, the image will move from side to side. If the bill is tilted, the image on the security thread will 'move' up or down instead. In addition, Americans plan to change the portrait of Benjamin Franklin. The bill will also change color – it will be made in soft pastel tones.
Experts believe that the US currency would benefit from enhanced security. The fact is that the popularity of the dollar makes it one of the most counterfeited currencies in the world. 'Threads are indeed effective measures for protecting banknotes,' says Valentina Alyulina, an employee of a bank. 'The need for such measures is dictated by the high quality of counterfeits.'
This is not the first time Americans have increased the security level of the dollar. Previously, the American eagle on the $20 bill changed its color, and the Statue of Liberty's torch 'turned red' on the $10 bill. In the fall of 2004, US embassies presented new $50 bills featuring a waving US flag. For the first time in the history of the dollar, it changed from its green color scheme. Experts explained this decision by US authorities by the fact that the capabilities of copying technology had grown so much that counterfeiting bills had become very easy. After all, today it is not a problem to find paints or buy continuous ink supply systems for any printer.
However, so far the efforts of the US administration have not yielded the desired results. Numerous studies conducted in various forensic laboratories show that currently the most counterfeit-proof currency is considered to be the euro, not the dollar.
Elena Fedotova.
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