A method for checking a security element of a security document, the security element containing at least one particulate substance with electroluminescent properties and at least one field displacement element, comprising the following method steps: - exposing the security element to an electrical excitation field, - generating an optical image of at least one region of the security element after or during the generation of the electrical excitation field, characterized by the method steps: - detecting local intensity maxima in the optical image, - verifying the security element if a number of local intensity maxima present at different image positions is greater than or equal to a predetermined number, the number being at least two, wherein a. a spatial distance of the local intensity maxima from one another or from a reference element is determined, the security element being verified if all or a predetermined proportion of the distances are less than a predetermined minimum distance or greater than a predetermined maximum distance, and/or b. a spatial quantity of the local intensity maxima is determined, the quantity corresponding to a number of contiguous pixels forming the local intensity maximum, the security element being verified if all quantities are greater than a minimum quantity and less than a maximum quantity and/or c. at least one luminescence-specific property of the luminescence radiation detected for generating the image is determined, the security element being verified if the luminescence-specific property is satisfied, the luminescence-specific property being a frequency of a temporal intensity curve of the luminescence radiation or a decay behavior of the maximum intensity of the luminescence radiation. - exposing the security element to an electrical excitation field, - generating an optical image of at least one region of the security element after or during the generation of the electrical excitation field, - detecting local intensity maxima in the optical image, - verifying the security element if a number of local intensity maxima present at different image positions is greater than or equal to a predetermined number, the number being at least two, a. a spatial distance of the local intensity maxima from one another or from a reference element is determined, the security element being verified if all or a predetermined proportion of the distances are less than a predetermined minimum distance or greater than a predetermined maximum distance, and/or b. a spatial quantity of the local intensity maxima is determined, the quantity corresponding to a number of contiguous pixels forming the local intensity maximum, the security element being verified if all quantities are greater than a minimum quantity and less than a maximum quantity and/or c. at least one luminescence-specific property of the luminescence radiation detected for generating the image is determined, the security element being verified if the luminescence-specific property is satisfied, the luminescence-specific property being a frequency of a temporal intensity curve of the luminescence radiation or a decay behavior of the maximum intensity of the luminescence radiation.