A store owner in Dongguan was given 15 notes with same serial number, HD90268566, on January 1. "Emergency" warnings are spreading on QQ and websites, claiming the fake notes are flowing into Guangdong. Fake 100-yuan notes, most starting with the serial number "HD90," have been reported in more than ten provinces and cities in China like Hunan, Hubei, Guangdong, Guangxi, Zhejiang, Sichuan, Fujian, Henan and Shandong etc. According to a statement issued by the central bank, the "HD90" fake notes were also found in 2007, but they now came with "far improved quality and features" similar to the original notes.The case has aroused public attention with the approaching of the festive season. Recent media reports said that 100-yuan notes, starting with numbers "HD90", are fake, but their quality is so high that even cash detectors cannot make them out. The central bank has stepped up efforts to crack down on counterfeit currency to ensure order during the traditional Spring Festival holiday. It also warned the public to be on the lookout for high quality counterfeit 100-yuan banknotes as cash transactions during Spring Festival are high. Many banks have joined hands with public security and commerce authorities to fight against crimes on counterfeit Renminbi (RMB). The People's Bank of China confirmed that some fake notes, starting with the numbers "HD9026", with magnetic strips and characters similar to the Braille, could fail "low quality cash detectors", but can be easily made out with the naked eye. "Even ordinary people can make out from their quality, watermarks and oil," it said.

　　The Shanghai Headquarters of the People's Bank of China (PBOC )said notes with serial numbers starting "HD90" aren't necessarily fake. People on Tianya.cn, China's most popular online forum, said bank notes with serial numbers starting with HD90, HB90, WJ135, FA, AB77, AB88 or AB99 may be counterfeit. So How to distinguish the difference between fake notes and real notes has become a hot topic among people these days.

　　There are 5 tips for you to identify fake notes:

　　Paper quality

　　Take the bill and ruffle it in your hands.The long way up, in your hands and kind of ruffle it in your hands. The sound should be clear and distinct. In the fake ones, the sound is muffled and the paper seems crisp.

　　Water Mark

　　There are two things to see in the light. If you hold the bill up you will see on the left side in the white space, there is a clear picture of Chairman Mao's face. On the fake bills, the outline of his face is blurred. Below the 100-number in the center of the note, there is a red and blue symbol inside a red circle with the red and blue sections on either side of the note. In the real bills, the red and blue boundaries in the symbol are very distinct. They are perfectly aligned, or else they overlap just very very slightly. In the fake bills the symbol is distorted. The red and blue sections are not aligned, one is usually a little higher than the other and often there is either a white space between their boundaries or they overlap unevenly. This is the easiest identifying mark of these bills.

　　Color Change

　　Below the white space, there is a green 100 (or 50 on the 50 bill, 20 on the 20 bill etc.) sign in the left corner. When looking flat at this sign, it is green. When the bill is tilted upwards, and you are looking at the sign from the bottom up the 100 turns brown. This is a real bill. But if when you tilt the bill upwards the symbol is only dark green, then this is a fake bill. This difference is slight and is easily seen if you have a real bill next to the fake bill.

　　The Texture of the picture of Chairman Mao

　　Hold the bill in your hand and rub your thumb gently against the collar on the big picture of Chairman Mao. You will notice a difference in texture on his collar. You will only feel it if you rub gently. If the paper is completely smooth, without any texture, you are holding a counterfeit!

　　The difference of "100"

　　On the top right hand corner, there is a 100 sign, just overlapping a little below the 100, there is a oval design. If you turn this design up, so you are looking up from the bottom, then place it so that light shines on it, you will see a very faint "100" on the oval. It is just slightly raised, this is a real bill. In the fakes, the 100 is either not there, or is very difficult to see.