You may have read countless articles about online scams swindling people out of their hard-earned money or identity thieves tricking banks into approving online transactions.

But what happens when the scam isn’t done online but in real life?



In an alarming case, an 82-year-old grandmother from the Sunshine Coast was left ‘terrified and humiliated’, after being duped into accepting thousands of dollars in counterfeit cash from a man claiming to be a prospective buyer.

Judy Dalgleish said she was helping her son sell his e-scooter when a man visited her home and handed her a wad of $100 bills in exchange for a ‘test-ride’.

However, Ms Dalgleish found it odd that instead of $3,500, the man handed her a total of $4,200.

‘There was too much there,’ she said.

When she took a closer look, she realised that the money appeared to feature writing in a foreign language.

Ms Dalgleish then counted the cash again and realised none of the notes ‘looked right’.



Unfortunately, by the time Ms Dalgleish realised the cash she had was fake, the man had already taken off with the e-scooter.

‘I don’t see too many $100 bills, I might tell you,’ she told reporters.


She said that she had an inkling that the man was a ‘crook’, but didn’t think too much of it at the time.

‘I should have perhaps looked harder or something. I’ve dealt with people all my life but it caught me. I didn’t think [they] would ever do that,’ she explained.

Although police told Ms Dalgleish that the scammer is unlikely to return to her home, she admitted that no amount of reassurance will erase her fears.

‘I can’t remember the last time that I’ve put chairs and whatever against the doors when I’ve shut them at night,’ she shared before adding that she’s scared he’ll come back for the counterfeit money.



In July last year, authorities reported that there was an increase in the circulation of fake banknotes in capital cities across the country. They said that criminals have been spreading fake $100 bills by using them to buy expensive or valuable items from online sellers, and the unsuspecting victims then pass on the notes to other people.

Authorities mentioned that scammers are likely to pose as buyers for items such as bikes and laptops. You can read more about this report here.


The Reserve Bank of Australia also released guidelines on how to detect counterfeit money. They said that you can tell if a banknote is genuine by checking a variety of features:

Feel if it’s plastic.

Australian banknotes have a distinctive feel and are printed on plastic. A counterfeit note may feel ‘excessively thick or thin’ compared to a genuine one. You can also try scrunching the banknote in your hand to see if it springs back. If it doesn’t it’s fake.



Look for the Coat of Arms.

The Australian Coat of Arms will appear on a genuine banknote when held up to the light.

Find the star.

Genuine banknotes have circles with diamond-shaped patterns printed on both sides. The patterns should perfectly align to form a seven-pointed star when held up to the light.

Look for the clear window.

There should be a clear window built into the genuine banknote. Make sure that the white image printed on the window section is impossible to rub off. Check the embossing as well – the $10 banknote has a wave pattern in the window, and the $20, $50, and $100 banknotes have their values embossed in the windows.
If you feel like you’ve received counterfeit money or have been scammed, don’t hesitate to call the authorities or contact ACCC here.