Orell Füssli Ltd. Security Printing & Koenig & Bauer Vision and Protection –Cypher Evo House Note

Orell Füssli Ltd. Security Printing & Koenig & Bauer Vision and Protection

Digitalisation has been the key megatrend of the past fifty years, with a significant impact on society and the economy. Over the last twenty years, the pace of this development has accelerated, and the widespread utilisation of smartphones has become the most obvious indicator of this disruptive period.

In response to this disruptive period, industry leaders Orell Füssli Security Printing and Koenig & Bauer’s new Vision and Protection division have been developing features that leverage the computing power, network connectivity, and advanced camera capabilities of smart devices to authenticate banknotes. To illustrate the variety and capabilities of such features, they presented the CYPHER EVO banknote at the recent Intergraf Currency+Identity conference in 2025. The CYPHER EVO banknote serves as a platform for demonstrating the capabilities of this new class of features.

In this light, the entire design and security concept of CYPHER EVO were intentionally developed to set it apart from traditional banknotes, emphasising innovation and a new type of security features.

The subject of the CYPHER EVO banknote design is encryption. While the front of the banknote pays homage to human-made encryption, the reverse is dedicated to DNA as nature’s encryption system.

With the dominant intaglio printing motifs on the front Greek skytale and zeroes and ones, the front of the CYPHER EVO banknote connects the past and the present of human-created encryption.

The reverse of the CYPHER EVO banknote is dominated by a section of a DNA helix and the four letters A,T, G and C, which symbolise the four nucleotide bases adenine, thymine, cytosine, and guanine. The subtle iridescent print of the pentagon and hexagon commemorates the molecular architecture of the nucleotide bases. DNA achieves security through chemical bonds, base pairing, and replication mechanisms. In this respect, DNA not only stores the blueprint of life but also encodes it in a way that is resilient, versatile, and efficient. The security of the CYPHER EVO banknote does not only rely on physical security features but also on digital security features, which are implemented on the front and reverse sides of the banknote.

The choice of physical security is deliberately limited to a basic set of security features such as intaglio printing, UV-fluorescent offset printing and iridescent screen printing. The serial number is printed with inkjet allowing for both new design dimensions and enhanced security.

CYPHER EVO banknote features three digital security features that have been designed for smartphone-based authentication. The first two developed by K&B and the third by Orell Füssli Security Printing:

OVJERA: this utilises the uniqueness of material variance and production characteristics and captures it on an optical level. Similar to biometric features – and hence part of a technology group called document ‘fingerprints’ – Ovjera can assign a precise identity to each object, connect metadata and update it with every scan.

DAKTYLO captures and classifies printing characteristics. It can robustly and quickly identify printing technologies – providing real time ‘pass’ or ‘fail’ results – without the need for a special ink or manipulations in the pre-press. Additionally wear and tear can be assessed and counterfeiting procedures revealed

JAGUAR: at the core of the feature is the patented Secure Graphic technology, which has been advanced and extended to high security documents. Created using offset security printing and standard inks, an app and corresponding algorithms are used to detect, localise, extract and ultimately authenticate the security pattern. Developed with secure graphic technology from Scantrust SA, JAGUAR enhances counterfeit detection through AI analysis of print degradation.

Digital security features for smartphone-based authentication add a versatile and adaptive security layer to banknotes, combining traditional high-security printing technologies with digital advancements.

From a citizen’s perspective, digital security features provide an intuitive and accessible way to verify banknotes by using their own smartphone. No expert knowledge or specialised equipment is required. This democratisation of authentication strengthens confidence in the integrity of physical currency.

In this respect, digital features go beyond security to enhance public engagement, particularly among younger generations. By integrating smart device authentication, central banks can increase awareness and interaction with physical banknotes and so reinforce trust in cash.