The purpose of this paper is to study what the press in Sweden wrote about counterfeiting from 1944 to 1950. By studying how the newspapers wrote about the crime of counterfeiting, the paper aims to give a glimpse of how counterfeiters worked and got their notes in circulation. The analysis is based on a theoretical perspective of a "we" and "they" in which Sweden is compared to the opposite abroad. The paper examines how the security of Swedish banknotes is discussed in Swedish news articles and how they describe counterfeiters and passers. The paper examines forty one newspaper clippings from the period 1944-1950 from twenty five different newspapers from different parts of the country. The study is implemented with previous research of media and counterfeiting.

The paper describes nine individual cases of counterfeiting, as well as a longer sequence of events with a criminal gang that is behind the counterfeit notes, where several similar notes are spread in different cities in Sweden. The conclusion is that counterfeiting is a small problem in Sweden during this time and the notes that come out in circulation are relatively poor copies. But the counterfeit notes are not always directly detected and that makes them spread in the country. Counterfeit banknotes are most likely to be detected in public environments such as cafes, shops and bakeries. And also outdoor by different merchants, according to the view of the press. The notes are mostly put in circulation during the evening or night, or when it's rush hour. Swedish banknote quality and safety is often compared to other countries where a "we" and "they" are constructed in the media. The press gives a comprehensive picture of counterfeiters as criminals, mysterious cheaters, fraudsters, artists but also as a dissenting profession.