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Comment by mbateman | Hacker News Reader

ATMs don't scan a deposited check or cash. They wait for someone in the bank to open it and determine whether it is legit, then the account is credited. But after a while your account becomes "trustworthy" and any deposits are credited to the account before it is checked.

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Living in China, I can say that when you deposit, you deposit bills that go through a counter and counterfeit scanner. If any bills don't pass the test, they're separated out and given back to you. You can try to submit again if you wish. It's amazingly efficient and works well. I'm surprised we don't have similar machines in Canada from where I originally hail, especially after the currency revamps.

edit: I have no idea how depositing cheques (checks for you Americans! :D) works here though.

This is true outside the banks as well. If you make any purchase exceeding 250 USD (approximating a purchase requiring 10+ 100RMB bills), chances are the store will have one of these machines.

China is also the only country I've found myself in possession of counterfeit currency. Sigh, I guess I should just take the loss of 100 RMB but I keep thinking a little luck in a taxi could keep the system flowing...

Heck, I get scanned in some restaurants these days for 30RMB meals. :)

Check this reply: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4347383

Basically it wasn't an ATM but a Nightly Drop box that allowed them to declare the amount of money they were depositing.

Ok, I didn't understand that part because the ATM here, in France, actually scan the notes.

You deposit the notes and the machine scans and count everything you deposited and gives you the number. If you agree, your account is credited.

I guess you could design fake notes that pass just the ATM...

Many newer ATMs do this, but there are still some old ones around.

New ATMs, that don't use envelopes, certainly scan the deposit.

Here is few more updates: http://goo.gl/7rw7o

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