A retail worker from Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. went viral after she posted a video lamenting how her coworkers continue to tape up the fake $100 bill she accepted while working the register.
TikToker Angie (@angierrez) posted the video to vent some of her frustration because her coworkers continue to tease her for having accepted fraudulent bills. Viewed over 497,000 times as of this publication, Angie’s video sparked a conversation about cashier responsibilities and led to stories from other workers who’ve also accepted fake money.
@angierrez scammers are getting smarter okay its not my fault😞 #fypシ ♬ HAVE SOME COMPASSION – Khloe Kardashian fan
Angie frames her clip with a text overlay that reads: “When my coworkers keep bringing up the fact that I basically helped scammers steal from my job not once but TWICE, and then they continue to tape up the fake $100 dollar bill I accepted.”
“Have some compassion. This really affects people,” she yells before the clip flashes to an image of the fake bill taped up at the register.
In her description, she defends her actions: “Scammers are getting smarter, OK. It’s not my fault.”
Cashiers in the comments explained how to ensure that a bill is genuine, and suggested steps to make sure she doesn’t repeat the same mistake.
“That’s why we mark it and get a manager anyway lmfaooo,” one said.
“Just check the bill every time….” a second added.
“That’s why I don’t take $100 or $50 [bills], and if the other coworker does, they have to buy it from the drawer. I’m not risking it,” a third shared.
“I always check for the watermark when you hold it to the light and the ridges at the top. Easy and quick,” another explained.
Others joked about the mistake and shared experiences of accepting fake $100 bills.
“That’s when I’d quit. Can’t handle that kinda embarrassment,” one user said.
“It’s OK, a girl at my job on her first day handed a customer around $4,000 bc they told her they were doing a cash pickup and that they worked there,” a third shared.
“Girl, happened to me last week. The bill is taped in the safe and pictures are posted in the break room,” someone else replied.
Counterfeit bills have been an ongoing issue for years. Though it’s easy to believe fraudsters are passing bills off to buy items, most use fake $100 bills to purchase smaller items, so they receive their change in clean bills. In response, many stores throughout the U.S. have adopted a “Not accepting bills over $20” policy.
Counterfeit $100 bills range in quality. Some can be hard to recognize, while others are obviously fake, like in the case of one worker who said they accidentally accepted a fake $20 bill that had the words “copy money” and “in copy we trust” on it.
Modern $100 bills have multiple security features, including an embedded thread, a 3-D ribbon with images of bells and numeral 100s, and a watermark on Benjamin Franklin’s face.
However, counterfeiters are getting smarter. Though increased security measures were introduced in 2013, there are many ways to circumvent these precautions. One counterfeiter, Victor Cardona from Quincy, Mass., was recently charged with producing over $467,000 in fake U.S. currency. He created a facility in his own home where he bleached $1 bills before reprinting them as $100s.
The Daily Dot reached out to Angie via TikTok comments for further information.
