When working in retail or running a business, you’re bound to encounter unpleasant customers. However, some are more discreet than others, especially when they’re trying to scam you.
Actress and entrepreneur Betty Rahmad and Nadiyah Shahab recently shared their experience of being scammed by a customer who gave them a fake banknote to buy their products. Here’s what happened:
Earlier this week, Betty Rahmad posted on Threads about an incident while she was running her Betty’s Kitchen booth at the recent Absolute Bazaar Mitec. According to the star, a customer had apparently paid her with a fake RM100 note when buying her products.
“Congratulations to that one customer who came to shop at my booth at the Absolute Bazaar MITEC. You managed to deceive me with this fake money 😅 May Allah replace it with something better for me 🤲,” she wrote. At first glance, the money appears normal, so without proper inspection, anyone could easily be fooled by the banknote.
Sadly, the actress wasn’t the only one who experienced this. Nadiyah Shahab, who is the director of the Absolute Bazaar event, replied to Betty’s post, saying that she was also a victim of the trickery. “It happened to me, too!” she wrote
Nadiyah even reposted a video by another business owner to warn everyone that this has been happening for quite some time. In the video by Swich Cafe, the owner provided a 5-step guide on how to spot a fake banknote without a counterfeit detector. Here are the things you should look out for:
The colour of the banknote: Counterfeits are usually brighter than genuine notes.
Quality of the paper: Those familiar with handling physical money can tell when a banknote is too light to be real.
Intaglio print: In a genuine note, the paper is rough, with a raised print effect on the portrait of the first SPB Yang di-Pertuan Agong and the text. The fake note is usually smooth.
- Look at the banknote against white light: If you hold the fake banknote against white light, the numbers ’00’ are misaligned and don’t form a perfect ’00’
- Embedded purple thread: The bunga raya on the purple security thread moves when you tilt the note.
It’s unfortunate that the two celebrities have to experience this but let this be a reminder for all business owners to always stay vigilant, especially when handling physical money. Has this ever happened to you?
Watch the guide video below:
