American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research
280
https://theusajournals.com/index.php/ajsshr
VOLUME
Vol.05 Issue05 2025
PAGE NO.
280-287
10.37547/ajsshr/Volume05Issue05-57
Comparison Between Original and Counterfeit Currency
Images
Zainab Khairallah Kadhim
General Directorate of Education in Najaf, Iraq
Suhad Ateyah Shahad
Kufa university, Najaf, Iraq
Received:
14 March 2025;
Accepted:
26 April 2025;
Published:
30 May 2025
Abstract:
Study of counterfeiting needs to know the methods using in the counterfeiting. Here we are working to
compare between original and counterfeit currency and find difference between them, the study takes the Iraqi
currency as an example or element to make testing. with applications on many parameters in Iraqi currency design
such as type of paper and ink using in printing and the saturation degree of the color in each one of them.
It’s very important to remember the penalty in Ira
qi law against the counterfeiting and explain that penalties to
show the effects on the persons whom working in this field.
The study needs to know the specifications and categories of Iraqi currency for each original and counterfeit to
make comparison clear.The investigation system depend on image segmentation; the best way to discovering
counterfeit currency is know the value of color to represent a counterfeit of a currency.
Introduction:
Counterfeiting is an imitation of something original and
its purpose is to deceive people and to make
counterfeit goods for the original goods in order to
obtain quick gain effortlessly. Fake goods include fake
money, jewelry, watches and medicines perhaps; The
counterfeiting of money is the most difficult work at all
because of the complexities of money paper from the
both sides: the type of the paper used and difficult
marks which include the different currencies and even
the way of serial numbers version on all paper
currencies, where all paper currencies contain unique
serial number that can be obtained from some complex
calculation operations.
But recently crimes of fraud spread in many countries
of the world , due to technological advances in printing
operations and also because many people dream to
achieve quick and easy gain to lift them out of poverty
as well as economic conditions that made them unable
to secure a living , the most serious types of fraud
:Counterfeiting of coins and paper currencies, which is
one of the biggest problems facing the economies of
the countries because of its adverse effects on the
economy and development [1].
This Crime has negative effects on individuals and
communities, and the multiple negative effects of this
crime are political, social economic destruction and
instilling hatred among individuals. Therefore, the
study must have enough knowledge for stopping them
by detecting manual faked currency where that
knowledge comes from the informing, and by devices
that can detect the fake currency by high accuracy [2].
Iraqi legislature addressed fraud in Chapter III of Part V
from the Iraqi Penal Code in force No. (111) in 1969 in
the part deals with the crimes against the public trust.
The paragraphs (280,281,286) of the Iraqi Penal Code
included the counterfeit details.
Methods of counterfeiting are now easier with modern
technology and evolving with the time. Lately, the
fakers use manual and electrical compressors instead
of casting which might contain many defects. Some of
these methods:
Firstly: Counterfeiting by manual drawing : It is an
attempt to mimic the patterns and graphics and
decorations on the correct paper where the faker used
his ability in drawing. Fakers often used water colors,
waxy, oily or colored pens focusing on tradition main
colors without attention to the finer decorations. This
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research
281
https://theusajournals.com/index.php/ajsshr
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research (ISSN: 2771-2141)
method is very difficult if the banknotes to be rigged
with large amounts, one of the characteristic of this
method are that it can detect counterfeit currency
because the paper used is very different from that used
in the original currency in the paper thickness and feel
of hand.
Secondly: counterfeiting by printing: This method is
more widespread and dangerous than the previous
method because of its ability to produce large
quantities of counterfeit banknotes nicely. In addition
the printing is the most trusted way by people.
Thirdly: counterfeiting by color photocopiers : Recently
forgery spreads in this way, the seriousness of this way
is apparent when the printing is with very high level,
where it does not require expertise in fraud and
counterfeits large amounts of currency in no time.
Fourthly: printing via computer: Using a laser printer is
one of the most serious types of fraud because of its
high quality in counterfeiting. It uses snob scanner and
filming a fiat currency, and then inserting this picture to
a computer, use the color processing program for
counterfeit currency and finally printed on any type of
printer.
PAPER CURRENCY
The currency is the trade exchange unit. Currency
differs from one state to another. It must be a currency
that can be divided into parts, not easily damaged.
Currency values varied .The U.S. dollar is considered
the most popular in the world now. It grades first in the
most foreign currency reserves in the countries of the
world.
Iraqi dinar is the official currency of Iraq and it is issued
by the Central Bank of Iraq. After the U.S. invasion of
Iraq, and the fall of Baghdad on April 9, 2003, the
Coalition Provisional Authority issued Iraqi dinars from
October 15, 2003 to January 15, 2004.
The categories of the Iraqi currency ranged from 50,
250, 5000, 10,000 to 25,000 dinars. The designing of
these categories are similar to the designs issued by the
Central Bank of Iraq in the seventies and early eighties
[1].It has characterized each category of currency with
certain specifications and can clarify the specifications
of each category, as the table (1.1):
Government in Iraq depends on the local and
international sources to print its national currency. The
world famous centers in printing currencies are
Switzerland. The government has printed currency
locally, but the remaining money printed locally is fraud
[3].
Table (1.1) Specifications categories of the Iraqi currency
Back
Face
Basic color
Values of Category
Palms
Granary in Basra
Violet
Fifty dinars
Moulouya Samarra
Astrolabe
Light Blue
Two hundred and fifty
dinars
Winged Ox
Dokan dam
Blue and green
Five hundred dinars
Previously
Mustansiriya school
previous gold dinar
Brown
Thousand dinars
Ukhaydir Fort
Waterfall Galy Ali
Begk in northern Iraq
Blue and Purple
Five thousand dinars
Lighthouse Hadba in
Mosul
Ibn al-Haytham
Green
Ten thousand dinars
King Hammurabi
Kurdish farming
carrying ears of wheat
Red
Twenty five thousand
dinars
The Method
This research includes creation some programs that
make comparison between original and counterfeit
currency by using some function provided by MATLAB
environment rely on image processing. The study will
see all these steps in flowchart below.
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research
282
https://theusajournals.com/index.php/ajsshr
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research (ISSN: 2771-2141)
3.1 The Input images
All images that we used are Iraqi currency (5
Thousands, 10 Thousands, 25 Thousands), but we will
focus on (10 Thousands) because it is more
counterfeiting.
Figure (2.2) represents (a) the original money basic on versions,(b) the counterfeit money basic on categories.
Image segmentation
"image segmentation" refers to a technique used in
computer vision for dividing a digital picture into
smaller, more manageable pieces. To make an image's
representation more intelligible and easier to analyse,
segmentation simplifies and/or changes it. The primary
purpose of image segmentation is to identify and
localise objects and their boundaries within images.
Assigning a label to each pixel in an image so that
labelled pixels share specific visual properties is the
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research
283
https://theusajournals.com/index.php/ajsshr
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research (ISSN: 2771-2141)
exact definition of image segmentation.
After an image is segmented, the entire image is
covered by a collection of segments or the image's
contours are retrieved (for more on this, see edge
detection). There are some computed attributes, like
colour, intensity, or texture, that all pixels in a
particular area have in common. Regarding the same
attribute or attributes, neighbouring areas are
drastically different [1].
3.3 Color processing
One aspect of colour processing is learning about the
physical characteristics of light that cause it to have
different hues.
2. The anatomy of the eye and how it perceives colour.
3. The brain's role in vision and how visual signals are
translated into colour perception.
Of the electromagnetic spectrum, visible light is a
component. In 1931, the Commission International
d'Eclairage (CIE), which is in charge of colour standards,
established the values for the wavelengths of blue,
green, and red. [4]
3.3.1 Color models
A color model is a method for specifying colors in some
standard way.
I.
RGB
The red, green, and blue light components of the RGB
colour model can be combined in different ways to
create a wide range of colours. Although the RGB
colour model has been used in traditional photography,
its primary application is in electronic image detection,
representation, and display systems like computers
and televisions.
II.
HSV
The HSV model depicts Colours in Figure (2.7) according
to hue, saturation, and value (brightness). The
following are the definitions of these terms:
1. Hue is synonymous with hue, as defined in the Colour
Basics section. Using colour has many benefits,
including readily apparent tone relationships on the
colour wheel. You may effortlessly create a wide range
of tones, shades, and tints without changing the hue.
2. The idea of tint in the Colour Basics section is
intimately related to saturation; nevertheless, full
saturation results in no tint and zero saturation yields
white, a shade of grey, or black.
Third, the idea of intensity in Colour Basics directly
relates to value.
4. Execution of the programs
This project consists of many interfaces, and within
these interfaces many tools are being used that
provided by MATLAB (GUIDE) environment.
Figure (3.3) Selection interface
If we start with the figure (3.3) and see the panel on
right (image segmentation) it has two buttons (crop1,
crop2) each one represents the cropping segment in
the selected image, let us see the buttons effect (crop1,
crop2), see figure (3.3.1) Observes the button (Hue
Starvation Value) that show us the analyze of (H S V)
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research
284
https://theusajournals.com/index.php/ajsshr
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research (ISSN: 2771-2141)
factors, see figure (3.3.2)shows the analyses of factors
H S V.
Figure (3.3.1) H S V interface.
Figure (3.3.2) Analysis of the factors H S V.
All the previous four interfaces have (list box) tool
enable us to choose different version currency images
to see the difference between original and counterfeit
currency. The same thing we see it in figure (3.3.2)
when clicked button (crop1), see figure (3.3.2.1).
Note the button (Hue Starvation Value) which show us the analyze of (H S V) factors, see figure (3.3.4) to show the
analyses of factors HSV.
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research
285
https://theusajournals.com/index.php/ajsshr
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research (ISSN: 2771-2141)
Figure (3.3.3) H S V interface.
When we return to figure (3.3) and clicked the button (crop2) we see the H S V function effect but the difference
that see the button (Enlarge Images), see figure (3.3.5) and figure(3.3.6).
Figure (3.3.4) Analysis of the factors H S V.
Figure (3.3.5) H S Vinterface
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research
286
https://theusajournals.com/index.php/ajsshr
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research (ISSN: 2771-2141)
Figure (3.3.6) Enlarging image
This figure shows us the difference between the original and counterfeit image in the font color in the text.
In figure (3.3.3) the same thing in buttons and button effective, see figures (3.3.7), (3.3.8), (3.3.9), and (3.3.10).
Figure (3.3.7) H S V interface
Figure (3.3.8) Analysis of the factors H S V
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research
287
https://theusajournals.com/index.php/ajsshr
American Journal Of Social Sciences And Humanity Research (ISSN: 2771-2141)
Figure (3.3.9) H S V interface Figure (3.3.10) Enlarging image
CONCLUSION
The algorithm was implemented in MATLAB
on27original currency images and 24 counterfeit
currency images and make the comparison between
them according the version ,comparison implemented
by using two factor (color processing and
histogram),the more clear results are appear in
category(10 Thousands) because it has many of
objects, where the least clearness currency is (5
Thousand),and we used another factors such as
compression rate and another color space such as
(YCBCR and YIQ) but all these factors did not appear
clear difference between original and counterfeit
currency images.
Future Works
One of the problems faced during the implementation
of the algorithm is that the original currencies may be
different in most cases; the difference may be in color
or dimensions. Another problem is the type of scanner
that we used to insert images to the computer, in order
to correct these types of problems, we must use
constant type of scanner, and make the images have
fixed dominations by edit length and width at possible.
In future, the best factor must be used is the study of
image texture which shows clearly differences and may
be avoid us all above problems.
REFERENCES
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia,(2012),Overview of
the counterfeiting.
Article
available
at
http://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/counterfeiting.
Tigris Center for Security Research and Defense in Iraq,
Methods of counterfeiting . Article available at
http://www.dijlacenter.com.
Coins and stamps forum Arab, Steps to detect
counterfeit paper currency.
Article available at http://www.coins4arab.com .
Alasdair McAndrew, An Introduction to Digital Image
Processing with Matlab, Notes for SCM2511 Image
Processing 1 Semester 1, 2004.
Wikibooks, the free encyclopedia,(2012),Color Models:
RGB, HSV, HSL.
Article available at http://en.wikibooks.org.
