How are scratch lottery tickets printed and kept secure?
The printing process for scratch card is extremely complex, comparable to printing banknotes.
Reels of paper weighing over a ton go through about 20 processes: initial printing of the base ink layer, high-speed spraying of the prize symbols, printing of the scratch-off coating layer, color printing of the ticket face, folding, as well as inspection, cutting, packaging… ultimately becoming the exquisite scratch card you see.
Why apply up to 20 layers of ink? The prize symbols are printed between layers of ink, like a "sandwich", in order to protect them.
Feature 1: Ink – Special anti-counterfeit, high confidentiality
Scratch cards printing are produced using the world's most advanced lottery ticket printing equipment. The scratch-off coating is printed with multiple layers of special anti-counterfeit ink, featuring high light-blocking, anti-counterfeit, and anti-see-through properties. Even an ultra-strong light source over 100 times more powerful than an ordinary flashlight cannot penetrate it; you must use a hard object to scratch it off to see the concealed code underneath.
Feature 2: Enclosed space, high-speed spraying
The prize symbols are sprayed on at high speed by automated computers in an unmanned, enclosed space. Immediately after spraying, the high-speed scratch-off coating is applied. Printing speeds generally exceed 100 meters per minute, reaching up to 200 meters per minute. The entire process is monitored 24/7 without blind spots, and an alarm sounds immediately if any abnormality occurs.
Feature 3: Printing quality meets international standards
During production, sample tickets are taken and sent to quality supervision stations for testing. Every year, a certain number of tickets are sent abroad for testing, ensuring that the printing quality meets international standards.
Just as every person has their own ID number, every scratch-off ticket has its own unique data code. The printed scratch-off tickets can only be sold after the encrypted data code information is transmitted to the Welfare Lottery Center's instant ticket system, verified, and confirmed by authorized lottery sales outlets.
■ What are the anti-counterfeit features of scratch-off tickets?
Anti-counterfeit feature 1: Security area validation code
At the bottom of the scratch-off ticket, there is an area marked "Invalid if security area scratched". Its surface is printed with a scratch-off coating, and the ticket's identity information is stored beneath this coating.
Special note: Do not scratch open the security area. Also, before purchasing a scratch-off ticket, make sure the security area has not been scratched open or damaged.
The validation code in the security area includes a "2D validation barcode" and a "manual verification code".
(1) 2D barcode – Whether the ticket is a winner and the prize amount are determined by the verification result of the 2D barcode. When redeeming a prize, the seller scratches open the security area and uses a dedicated validation device to scan the 2D barcode, and the winning information is displayed directly.
(2) However, there may be cases where the seller accidentally damages the 2D barcode in the security area, making the data unreadable and preventing prize redemption. To solve this issue, a manual verification code is designed to assist in prize validation.
Anti-counterfeit feature 2: Drifting letters
Drifting letters refer to 2–3 validation letters that appear among the prize symbols within the game play area.
Drifting letters serve as an auxiliary validation tool for sellers. If a winning ticket has been counterfeited through splicing, patching, or other means, the winning information indicated by the drifting letters will not match the counterfeit winning information.
The drifting letters have been upgraded from 2 letters in 10 positions to 3 letters in 30 positions, greatly enhancing anti-counterfeit capability.
Anti-counterfeit feature 3: Microtext (Tiny words)
Microtext refers to the background pattern within the ticket's game play area.
From a distance, it looks like irregular lines. But with the help of a magnifying glass, you can see that these lines contain a hidden pattern: they are composed of continuously repeated characters – the initials of the Chinese Welfare Lottery's pinyin, "ZGFLCP". Otherwise, the ticket can be directly determined to be counterfeit. (See illustration)
Anti-counterfeit feature 4: Dot matrix symbols
Dot matrix symbols – the graphic symbols within the ticket's game play area are drawn and sprayed using a dot matrix pattern.
When observing a dot matrix-generated pattern with a magnifying glass, you can see that the edges of the graphics are jagged, composed of regular dots (as opposed to the smooth edges of general printing). Otherwise, the ticket can be directly determined to be counterfeit.
How to tell if a scratch-off ticket is within the sales validity period?
Each scratch-off ticket has a corresponding production batch numbe, this number is usually located on the front of the ticket near the logistics code, or on the bottom of the back of the ticket. This batch number can be used to determine whether the ticket is still valid for sale.