Glossary

An optical detection system capable of determining the presence of intaglio printing on a banknote.

A security printing process that is synonymous with banknote printing but also used on ID documents and some tax stamps. The area of the image to be printed is recessed into the surface of the printing plate via engraving or etching and the recessed areas filled with high-viscosity ink. The excess ink is wiped from the plates and heavy pressure is applied to transfer the ink to the paper. The resulting raised ink profile gives intaglio-printed documents their characteristic tactility.

The fundamental building block of all modern electronic devices. An integrated system of multiple miniaturised and interconnected components embedded into a thin substrate of semiconductor material (usually silicon crystal). Also known as a chip or microchip.

A category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognise more than others. The best-known types are patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets.

An anti-theft mechanism located in a cash container or security case that is locked with a special seal and a security key. If the security case is stolen, any attempt to open it by force (or without using the correct key) will automatically trigger the mechanism and the banknotes will immediately become recognisable as stolen and should therefore be rejected at any financial institution.

The balancing off of bank funds held at a central bank at a given agreed moment at the end of a trading period. If Bank A’s customers have transferred more money to Bank B than Bank B’s customers have transferred to Bank A, then Bank A needs to transfer appropriate funds to even out the balance.

A fee paid between banks for the acceptance of card-based transactions. For instance, a merchant’s bank (acquiring bank) will pay an interchange fee to the cardholder’s bank (issuing bank) when the latter makes a transaction. This is also the case when a cardholder uses an ATM: the cardholder’s bank pays a fee to the ATM operator.

The result of the interaction between two superposing waves. Interference pigment flakes are used in colour-shifting inks, and interference foils with colour-shifting properties also exist.

A security thread containing an invisible code printed in magnetic ink, which can be used to authenticate and/or denominate banknotes in sorting machines.

A specialised agency of the United Nations responsible for establishing goals and objectives of traveller identification management.

An independent, non-governmental international organisation with a membership of 165 national standards bodies. Through its members, ISO brings together experts to share knowledge and develop voluntary, consensus-based, market-relevant international standards that support innovation and provide solutions to global challenges.

A network of physical objects that are embedded with sensors, software, and other technologies for the purpose of connecting and exchanging data with other devices and systems over the internet.

The ability of different information systems, devices and applications to access, exchange, integrate and cooperatively use data in a coordinated manner, within and across organisational, regional and national boundaries.

Name of the International Criminal Police Organisation, dating back to 1923. Its activity extends to all crimes of common law and especially those related to drug and gold trafficking, counterfeiting of money and capturing criminals harbouring in a foreign country. Police forces from most countries in the world take part in this organisation.

The metal value of a coin or medal.

The ability of some materials to create rainbow effects when they reflect white light. Pearls, oil films on water and bubbles all show iridescence. The effect can be created with foils, ink, and laminates to create optically variable devices.

An ink containing (normally) tiny flakes of a shiny silicate mineral (mica) that interferes with incoming light to create a pearl effect on the finished document. Iridescent inks are sometimes used as low-grade security features. They are not the same as colour-shifting inks.

An ISO guidance standard for performance criteria for authentication solutions used to combat counterfeiting of material goods. This standard was revised under a new number: ISO 22383:2020.

An ISO compliance standard specifying requirements for a security printing management system for security printers. The certifying organisation behind 14298 is Intergraf.

An ISO standard for the specification and usage of visible digital seal (VDS) data format for authentication, verification and acquisition of data carried by a document or object.

An ISO guidance standard establishing general principles for an organisation to identify the risks related to various types of product fraud and product fraudsters.

An ISO guidance standard for establishing interoperability among object identification systems to deter counterfeiting and illicit trade.

An ISO guidance standard for the content, security, issuance and examination of excise tax stamps.

An ISO guidance standard for the selection and performance evaluation of authentication solutions for material goods.

An ISO guidance standard for assessing product security-related threats, risks and countermeasures by developing a suitable protection plan, supporting its implementation and monitoring its effectiveness once implemented.

An ISO guidance standard for establishing a framework for trust and interoperability.

An ISO guidance standard for securing physical documents.

An ISO guidance standard, under development, for establishing trustworthy supply chains for material goods.

An ISO/IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) standard specifying common rules for unique identification required to ensure full compatibility across different identities.

An ISO/IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) standard specifying a method whereby data stored within a barcode or RFID tag are structured, encoded and digitally signed.

Atoms of the same element with the same number of protons (atomic number) but a different number of neutrons. 

A forensic marker technology that involves adding isotopic variants of one or more components of a formulation or packaging to allow the identification of genuine products.

The entity authorised to issue money of legal tender in a country. Generally, the expression is synonymous with a central bank or monetary authority. Also refers to government authorities issuing ID documents, tax stamps and other secure documents.

A fraudulent act where cybercriminals cash out automatic teller machines using extremely sophisticated malware. To pull off this illegal payday, criminals avoid using brute force to dispense cash.

A system of encryption whereby a ‘key’ is required to decode a message. The key is usually a handheld device which renders meaningful that which was previously unintelligible. Public keys may be disseminated widely, whereas private keys are restricted to certain individuals, thereby limiting access to the encrypted information. See also Public key infrastructure.

An adjective whose roots in the Greek word ‘kinesis’ indicate motion. A holographic image which displays movement of form or colour is said to be kinetic. Often, such images are patterns rather than objects. The patterns can be made up of fine lines or graphic elements and appear to scintillate when moved.

A tamper-resistant feature employing a die-cutting process whereby adhesive-backed foils or papers are cut through, but the laminated backing paper is not.

An image which is applied on laminate coating to protect it against forgery. Screen printing and gravure printing are the most frequent printing methods used for laminate overprint.

The technique/process of manufacturing a material in multiple layers, using heat, pressure, welding or adhesives, so that the composite material achieves improved strength, stability, appearance or other properties. A laminate for ID documents is a mostly clear layer of plastic placed over the information on the ID data page to prevent tampering. The laminate will most often contain visual anticounterfeit features for further protection.

An acronym of ‘light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation’, a device that produces coherent light by stimulated emission of radiation.

Pictures and text are engraved in plastic laminates or cards by means of a laser. In the laser engraving process the data are written by blackening (carbonising) laser-sensitive foils. Using different photo-sensitive materials, colours can also be obtained.

Using energy delivered by a laser, holes of different shapes and sizes can be perforated into a substrate to produce serial numbers and other data, such as in an ID document.

An electrostatic digital printing process that produces text and graphics by repeatedly passing a laser beam back and forth over a negatively charged cylinder called a ‘drum’, which defines a differentially charged image. Laser colour digital copiers use this printing technique. It is a technique used in counterfeiting banknotes and other security documents.

An image formed by parallel straight relief strokes perpendicular to background strokes. The image is almost invisible in incidental white light at a right angle. It is visualised as an achromatic image in sliding white light at an acute angle of observation due to the shadow cast by the relief strokes. The background and image are applied by means of intaglio and have the same colour and stroke density.

A latent image formed by multicolour relief strokes. A latent multicolour image is slightly visible in white light. It is visualised as a chromatic image under oblique light. Every chromatic element of the image changes colour when rotating the document around the vertical axe without changing the angle of observation. Background strokes are applied by offset and relief lines by intaglio.

A latent image that has been fragmented and encoded according to a special algorithm. The image is visualised via a lenticular decoding device.

Money that is legally valid for the payment of debts and must be accepted for that purpose when offered. Each jurisdiction determines what is legal tender, but essentially it is anything that when offered (‘tendered’) in payment of a debt extinguishes the debt. There is no obligation on the creditor to accept the tendered payment, but the act of tendering the payment in legal tender discharges the debt.

The lettering, words or phrases that are engraved on coins, usually located along or around the outside edge of the coins.

Central banks usually fulfil the function of ‘lender of last resort’. To ensure financial stability, the central bank provides emergency credit to financial institutions that are struggling financially and near collapse, for example if they no longer have other available means of borrowing, and where their failure to obtain credit would dramatically affect the economy. An example of when this is needed is if bank account holders withdraw funds at a level and in a timespan which means the bank cannot liquidate assets fast enough to match the demand, creating what is known as a ‘run on the bank’.

An array of lenses, designed so that when viewed from slightly different angles reveal different parts of an image. The most common example are the lenses used in lenticular printing to give an illusion of depth, or to make images that appear to change or move according to the viewing angle.