How to spot a fake banknote?

Is the tenner in your pocket worth ten pounds, or less than the paper it's printed on?

Ever since money was invented there have been people trying to fake it.

Today sophisticated printing techniques mean that forgers remain but one short step behind any changes made by the banks.

So read below to find out our top tips for spotting counterfeit money.

# Paper: Genuine notes are printed on a fine cotton weave which has a very different feel from ordinary paper.

# Watermark: To check the watermark hold the paper up to the light. Real notes will have the watermark in the paper. Counterfeiters will print the watermark on to the paper.

# Clarity of printing: Under close scrutiny the detail of fake notes will look messy and lack the detail that can be seen in real notes.

# Quality of printing: Real notes are printed on "intaglio" presses which raise the ink off the paper and give it a unique textured feel. If the printing on your note is flat, it could be a fake.

# Metal thread: Sometimes counterfeiters try to "hot foil" a strip onto the note - but on any real note this should run through the paper.

# Hologram: Real notes will have a high quality hologram, but counterfeiters try to get round this by printing an ultra fine foil on to the note.

# Serial numbers: Genuine notes have individual serial numbers. But forgers will often not bother - so if two or more of your notes have the same numbers then they're fake.

# Coins: If you can scratch the surface and the gold colouring comes off easily then your coin is a fake - and unfortunately worthless.