Singapore – Global e-commerce platform Amazon has launched a new report detailing its advances to crack down counterfeits on the platform, which in turn protects their customers, brands, and selling partners.

The report also details how the strategic combination of industry-leading technology and experts are successfully stopping bad actors and making an impact beyond Amazon’s store. It notes that the platform has also identified, seized, and disposed appropriately around six million counterfeit goods, preventing them from reaching customers and being resold elsewhere in the global supply chain.

Part of its success in cracking down on counterfeit goods on the platform is due to the platform’s efforts in identifying and dismantling counterfeit organisations. In 2022, the platform’s Counterfeit Crimes Unit sued or referred for investigation over 1,300 criminals in the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, and China.

The platform has also continued to work with law enforcement agencies and global brands to further prevent counterfeit goods entering the platform’s supply chain. Moreover, it has also continued to improve its robust seller verification, including connecting one-on-one with prospective sellers through video chat, coupled with continued advancements in their machine learning-based detection.

Dharmesh Mehta, vice president of worldwide selling partner services at Amazon, said, “We take pride in the progress our organisation has made this past year, specifically further evolving our technology to stay ahead of bad actors and doubling down on our criminal referral and litigation efforts.”

Mehta added, “We’re appreciative of the growing industry-wide collaboration in this space, and look forward to continuing to innovate and work together to drive counterfeits to zero.”

Singapore – Regional e-commerce platform Shopee has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with non-profit organisation Pharmaceutical Security Institute (PSI) to combat the sale of counterfeit pharmaceutical products online.

The MOU affirms both Shopee and PSI’s commitment and dedication to protecting public health against counterfeit medicines and is part of Shopee’s increased efforts to tackle counterfeits on its platform.

The MOU was signed virtually by Terence Pang, chief operating officer at Shopee; and Todd Ratcliffe, president and chief executive officer at the Pharmaceutical Security Institute

Under this partnership, Shopee and PSI will collaborate closely on initiatives for both sellers and shoppers. This includes educational programmes and the sharing of industry best practices to inform sellers, as well as awareness campaigns to protect shoppers.

Pang said, “Shopee looks forward to partnering with the PSI as part of our ongoing efforts to ensure a safe and trusted marketplace environment for brands and shoppers to transact. The safety of our shoppers is our priority and we are always looking for ways to enhance our platform and better protect users. This includes partnerships with leading organisations such as the PSI, which allows us to tap on industry knowledge and best practices to strengthen our current measures against counterfeits, and allow users to shop with greater confidence.”

Meanwhile, Ratcliffe commented, “The PSI is pleased to partner with Shopee in our ongoing journey of protecting public health. Recently, we have noticed an increase in the number of seizures of counterfeit pharmaceutical products, the result of bad actors taking advantage of easing pandemic restrictions and new opportunities. It is important for the PSI to work closely with key e-commerce platforms like Shopee to increase public education and awareness on counterfeit medicines to protect consumers. Together with Shopee, the PSI looks forward to rolling out new initiatives that make e-commerce a safe and secure way to shop.”

The MoU is part of Shopee’s increasing efforts to make e-commerce safer for its community of sellers, shoppers and partners, by collaborating with key stakeholders including industry associations and government bodies to collectively combat counterfeit goods.

Bangkok, Thailand – The Intellectual Property (IP) Key Southeast Asia project, an intellectual property rights (IPR) project in educating consumers, has launched a new public service announcement (PSA)-like campaign to promote consumer awareness against the use of counterfeit cosmetic and beauty products in the region.

The campaign is called #YourHealthIsPriceless, and encourages consumers in the Southeast Asia region to support the current cross-border cooperation on improving intellectual property rights (IPR) enforcement by informing other consumers about the downside of buying counterfeit cosmetics and personal care products from illegitimate sources.

“This IP Key SEA campaign aims to continue raising the public’s awareness of this issue, and initiate dialogues on intellectual property rights, including trademark protection,” said Tiago Guerreiro, IP Key SEA project leader.

“Trademarks protect consumers against confusion, deception, and misleading information, help them distinguish genuine products from counterfeit ones, and guarantee the products’ quality. An efficient trademark protection system can prevent people from being exposed to dangerous substances and could save their lives,” added Guerreiro.  

He also commented , “Local authorities in Southeast Asia are currently undertaking efforts to prevent the trafficking of counterfeit beauty products and protect consumers from the harmful effects that these products cause to their faces, skin, and holistic well-being. Through the IP Key SEA project, the EU fully supports this mission throughout the region.”

The campaign, which initially piloted last September this year, is funded by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO). Users who have experience in using these counterfeit products may report it online through EUIPO’s social media pages.