Fakes are out there. Precious metal bloggers are often worried about counterfeit products, regardless of their age or where they were purchased.
We take this issue very seriously here at APMEX. While the problem of counterfeiting is prevalent, it is not new. Counterfeit coins and bars have been sold as legitimate for over a decade. What has changed is that counterfeiters are getting better at replicating genuine precious metals, and their products are more complex to detect.
As manufacturers, retailers, and sovereign mints begin securing their bars in tamper-evident packaging, counterfeiters also match these strides and create counterfeit packaging. If you can accurately counterfeit a gold or silver bar, it’s simple to counterfeit plastic and cardboard packaging.
How to Avoid Buying Counterfeit Products
So, how do you protect yourself in a world where counterfeiting exists? The first and most important rule is to know your seller. You have a lot of choices, online or in brick-and-mortar stores, where gold coins and bars can be purchased. It’s up to you, the buyer, to choose wisely.
When shopping around online for new places to purchase precious metals, the first thing you should check is the reviews on the website, the Better Business Bureau, and any topics on the company that come up on Reddit. If there is a distinct lack of reviews, several short and AI-sounding reviews, or many poor reviews, steer clear of the company.
Next, compare the prices of the product you want across a few other websites. If one site lists the product at a much lower cost and it’s not on sale or listed much higher than others, you should not purchase from them. Reputable precious metal sellers are transparent with their prices according to the market. If the deal seems too good to be true, it probably is.
Lastly, the product’s availability is another way to tell if the seller is reputable. If the website describes the item as having a limited mintage of 200 and they claim to have 150 of them in stock, it’s very likely to be counterfeited products. Even the world’s best precious metals dealers don’t have that much stock on a rare product.
Shopping in-store is a bit more complicated. Before going to the store, do some research on the location. Do they have a website? Social media? Reviews? If the answer is yes to all of them, it’s probably a legitimate seller, so long as the reviews are highly rated and appear from genuine customers. Some small business owners don’t spend much time on social media or creating fancy websites, so listening to the customers is best. When you go to the store, be wary of the salespeople. If they seem pushy, don’t have much information on the product, and avoid questions, you may not want to purchase from them.
Extreme caution is advised when buying precious metals from resellers. Like buying antiques or even event tickets, nefarious individuals seek unsuspecting buyers to take advantage of. Ask many questions, inspect the product in person, request receipts from where they initially purchased it, and, if applicable, check the seller’s reviews. eBay and Craigslist are popular resale and trade platforms, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re trustworthy.
How Does APMEX Detect Counterfeit Products?
It begins in our receiving department, where every coin, bar, or round is carefully scanned using highly accurate and noninvasive technologies, such as X-ray fluorescence.
Highly trained team members then use a proprietary method to determine the electrical conductivity of non-ferrous metals. This method confirms the metal’s density and hardness, allowing greater certainty about the material’s makeup.
Once the receiving team has determined the item’s fineness, thickness, and weight, our numismatic team examines it. Even if the fineness, thickness, and weight are within the tolerances of our sophisticated instruments, it does not guarantee that a coin or bar is genuine, so we go one step further to protect your investment.
Our numismatic team examines how the item is struck and how the bar, coin, and packaging compare to known genuine examples. Members of our numismatic team are seasoned veterans. They currently teach courses on spotting counterfeits to the American Numismatic Association. We even brought in the world’s foremost counterfeiting expert to teach APMEX more about their craft.
Our unique blend of utilizing advanced technology and decades of experience makes it extraordinarily difficult for counterfeit coins or bars to elude our detection. We detect dozens of counterfeit coins and bullion items each week and prevent them from returning to the marketplace. We send counterfeits directly to the smelter, where they rightfully belong.
How to Test Your Products for Authenticity
Let’s say you inherited some precious metals from a relative, bought a few pieces at a garage sale, or stumbled upon a piece in a thrift store. How can you tell if your precious metals are real? There are several ways to test your new acquisitions at home. These tests are not entirely foolproof, but they’re easy ways to quickly figure out how likely it is that your item is made of genuine precious metals. If you intend to sell it, we recommend having it authenticated by a professional.
How to Test Silver
- The Ice Cube Test—The idea is to place an ice cube on silver and see how quickly it melts. Silver is highly conductive, and ice should melt quickly on it. This test is popular but not super reliable.
- The Ring Test—A bit more reliable, you can tap the rim of a suspected silver coin with a pencil. If the coin makes a ringing sound, it is silver. Use caution and be gentle so as not to damage the coin.
- The Magnet Test—a simple but tried and true method of quickly identifying magnetic properties in suspected silver. To rule out the possibility that it’s not silver, you can hold a magnet up to the item to see if it sticks. If it does, it’s not silver.
- The Measurement Test — This test is pretty accurate, but you must acquire a bullion scale and calipers. You can measure the edges to determine the thickness and diameter of the coin, then compare the dimensions online to a similar or identical product. This works well for established coins but not as well for generic rounds, as they vary in size.
- XRF Scanner — If you can get an X-Ray Fluorescent scanner, that is the most accurate way to determine if the silver is genuine and the purity by measuring the different levels. Some local bullion dealers have this technology and offer testing services, so you can explore that route if you can’t get one yourself.
How to Test Gold
- The Water Test — One of the simplest ways to test if your gold is real is by placing it in a bowl of water. If it floats, it’s not pure gold.
- The Magnet Test — Like silver, gold has no magnetic properties and should not stick to a strong magnet. If yours does, then it is not real gold.
- The Vinegar Test — Place your gold in a bowl of white vinegar and wait 15 minutes before removing and rinsing it. If the gold is real, it will shine. If it is not real, it will change color or react chemically with the vinegar.
How to Test Platinum
- The Magnet Test — Platinum is not magnetic, either, so you can use a strong magnet to determine if the item is genuinely platinum.
- The Ice Test — This also works with platinum! Make sure your item is at room temperature for this test. If the ice melts rapidly where it touches the platinum, it is more likely to be authentic.
- The Scratch Test — You can purchase a scratch test kit from your local precious metals dealer, jeweler, or online. This kit uses acid and a scratch stone to test a chemical reaction. It is accurate at determining the authenticity of the platinum presence and any other test you wish to do on it from the kit to determine the makeup.
