| The Dollar Always Greener on the Other Side? | | | | money worked hand in hand with the manufacture |
| The United States Secret Service was established in | | | | and distribution of narcotics by local criminal |
| the 19th century at the end of the American Civil | | | | organizations. |
| War to try to put an end to making counterfeit | | | | The superdollar, an almost perfect counterfeit of a |
| money when approximately one-third to one-half of | | | | United States banknote, has been circulating since the |
| all the currency flooding the nation’s market | | | | late 1980s and is so called because the technology |
| was fake. Today in the 21st century, the Secret | | | | used to create the note exceeds the technology of |
| Service’s role has expanded to include | | | | the original. Currently, it is estimated that 1 in 10,000 |
| aggressively pursuing American money counterfeiters | | | | bills is a super note. In an ongoing strategic |
| and traffickers internationally. | | | | investigation, the U.S. government determined that |
| Counterfeiting once again is on the rise with the | | | | the main culprit in superdollar distribution scheme was |
| continuing quantum leaps of computer technology | | | | North Korea for the purpose of financing its own |
| and ubiquitous access. A popular | | | | government and to undermine U.S. economy. |
| “funny-money” making method is digital | | | | Likewise, North Korea responded that the |
| printing using computer scanners and high-resolution | | | | accusations were “sheer lies” and an |
| printers. Professional money-printing presses use | | | | exploitation of the issue as pretext to war; and in |
| technologies similar to those of the U.S. Bureau of | | | | January 2007 reports surfaced suggesting that the |
| Engraving and Printing and produce high quality | | | | CIA was the culprit behind the counterfeiting. Later |
| “supernotes” or | | | | that same year a report by Swiss investigators |
| “superdollars” that can easily fool an | | | | challenged the U.S. claim of North Korea’s |
| unwary or untrained eye. | | | | culpability. |
| In a report issued in October 2006, the United States | | | | Interestingly, the U.S. Secret Service has noted a |
| Treasury Department released its findings with a list | | | | substantial reduction in the quantity of forged U.S. |
| of countries deserving special mention as sources of | | | | currency. Despite the growing availability of |
| counterfeit U.S. currency. According to the study, | | | | counterfeiting technologies, in 2005 only about USD |
| Latin America in general, Bulgaria in Southeast Europe | | | | $61 million (a relatively small amount) in fake money |
| and the region on Russia’s southern border | | | | was passed on to the public worldwide. Meanwhile |
| were amongst the highest rankers. Colombia, in | | | | counterfeiters have turned their attention to the |
| particular, for the last four years has topped the list | | | | Euro, which has experienced rapid growth in the |
| where the largest amounts of forged U.S. notes | | | | forgery of banknotes and coins since the Euro's |
| were seized and where the trafficking of counterfeit | | | | launch in 2002. |