Machine Assisted Authentication of Paper Currency: an Experiment on Indian Banknotes

Abstract: Automatic authentication of paper money has been targeted. Indian bank notes are taken as reference to show how a system can be developed for discriminating fake notes from genuine ones. Image processing and pattern recognition techniques are used to design the overall approach. The ability of the embedded security aspects is thoroughly analysed for detecting fake currencies. Real forensic samples are involved in the experiment that shows a high precision machine can be developed for authentication of paper money. The system performance is reported in terms of both accuracy and processing speed. Comparison with human subjects namely forensic experts and bank staffs clearly shows its applicability for mass checking of currency notes in the real world. The analysis of security features to protect counterfeiting highlights some facts that should be taken care of in future designing of currency notes.