Amazon Establishes Counterfeit Crime Unit To Combat Counterfeit Products

A concept image of a magnifying glass with a wooden handle on a textured white

surface showing the ... [+] word authentic but magnifying the word fake resembling
counterfeitting Getty Last week, Amazon announced that is has established a
Counterfeit Crime Unit to help combat the billions of counterfeit listings that are
attempted each year on Amazon. You can access Amazon's full announcement
post here. Everyday counterfeiters are trying to sell inferior quality goods on
Amazon under the brand name of other companies. These counterfeiters often infringe
on the trademark, patent, and copyright laws in the process. The new Counterfeit
Crime Unit is focused on identifying those who sell counterfeit products on Amazon,
bringing about legal action, and preventing future fake product listings before
they happen. Millions of different sellers sell hundreds of millions of products on
Amazon. It makes sense that one of the company's most significant issues is
counterfeiting operations that knock-off name brand products. Amazon's aggressive
stance against counterfeit products is warranted, and I will dive into why it
matters below.     Customer, seller, and governmental pressure    Recently there
has been significant pressure on Amazon by sellers, consumers, and governmental
agencies to fight against counterfeiters or, as Amazon calls them, "bad actors."
These bad actors steal revenue from a legitimate business and provide the customer
with a knock-off product vs. what they intended to purchase. Many credible
companies that compete against counterfeit products on Amazon will further lower
prices to compete with knock offs. Often these businesses are already operating on
slim margins and by dropping prices to compete, it can be extremely detrimental to
the company.    The Numbers   In 2019, Amazon expressed a firm stance toward
counterfeiters and backed it up with capital and employee resources for fighting
fraud, which includes counterfeit products. Below are the 2019 numbers that reflect
the full extent of Amazon's efforts to stop fraud.    Over $500 million invested in
fighting fraud, including counterfeits   8,000 employees dedicated solely to
combating these issues    Blocked more than 6 billion suspected harmful listings   
Blocked over 2.5 million suspected bad actors before they were able to post a
single product available for sale   The Goal    In the last year, Amazon's efforts
to stop counterfeit products from being listed on the Amazon marketplace was
extensive. Last year, 99.9% of products on Amazon didn't have a single counterfeit
complaint. That number may seem very significant by most standards, but Amazon will
not settle for that standard. The goal of the new Counterfeit Crime Unit is to
drive the number of counterfeit products to zero. Initially, this goal seems nearly
impossible, but there isn't another company in the industry willing to assign the
amount of capital and resources to combat counterfeiting than Amazon will. The
company hangs its hat on being customer obsessed. Making sure sellers and buyers
can use a marketplace free of counterfeit products is the exact reason the
Counterfeit Crime Unit now exists. Amazon has set a lofty goal, but it did not
reach its current level of success by settling for good enough.   Amazon Amazon How
the Counterfeit Crime Unit works   Amazon's new Counterfeit Crime Unit is full of
global professionals across multiple disciplines, including former federal
prosecutors, experienced investigators, and data analysts. The global team will
focus on investigating cases where "bad actors" have attempted to evade Amazon's
security systems and list counterfeit products that violate Amazon policies. The
implementation of this team will allow Amazon to be more resourceful in aiding law
enforcement officials while pursuing prosecution and civil litigation. The team
will also work independently and jointly with brands that have been affected by the
selling of counterfeit products. The most compelling piece of this announcement is
the wealth of prosecution, litigation, and data mining experience that comes from
hiring previous federal prosecutors, experienced investigators, and data analysts.
It is easy to understand how federal prosecutors and investigators stack the odds
in Amazons' favor, but data analysts may not be as self-explanatory. Data analysts
can be leveraged to mine Amazons data, cull information from external resources
such as payment providers, and use resources in the region to connect the dots and
pinpoint criminal activity.    The sentiment that I got from Amazon's press release
announcement is that counterfeiters will be prosecuted to the furthest extent that
the law will allow.     "Every counterfeiter is on notice that they will be held
accountable to the maximum extent possible under the law, regardless of where they
attempt to sell their counterfeits or where they're located" Dharmesh Mehta, Vice
President of Customer Trust and Partner Support at Amazon.  Wrapping up  
Counterfeit products are not a new occurrence within online marketplaces. Since
Amazon operates the world's largest online retailer, it's no surprise that
counterfeit products are one of the business's most significant customer and seller
complaints. The bright side of this discussion is that Amazon is taking ownership
and promising to hold those counterfeiters accountable for their actions. If the
number of counterfeit products in the marketplace drops due to the help of the
Counterfeit Crime Unit, the customer and the credible sellers reap the benefit. It
is great to see Amazon addressing customer, seller, and governmental complaints
with many resources and capital. Counterfeiting attempts on Amazon will continue to
happen, but with the right precautions and actions taken against counterfeiters, we
can enjoy a more trustworthy, clean online marketplace.    Note: Moor Insights
& Strategy writers and editors may have contributed to this article. 
Disclosure: Moor Insights & Strategy, like all research and analyst firms,
provides or has provided paid research, analysis, advising, or consulting to many
high-tech companies in the industry, including Amazon.com, Advanced Micro
Devices, Apstra, ARM Holdings, Aruba Networks, AWS, A-10
Strategies, Bitfusion, Cisco Systems, Dell, Dell EMC, Dell Technologies, Diablo
Technologies, Digital Optics, Dreamchain, Echelon, Ericsson, Foxconn, Frame,
Fujitsu, Gen Z Consortium, Glue Networks, GlobalFoundries, Google, HP Inc., Hewlett
Packard Enterprise, Huawei Technologies, IBM, Intel, Interdigital, Jabil Circuit,
Konica Minolta, Lattice Semiconductor, Lenovo, Linux Foundation, MACOM (Applied
Micro), MapBox, Mavenir, Mesosphere, Microsoft, National Instruments, NetApp,
NOKIA, Nortek, NVIDIA, ON Semiconductor, ONUG, OpenStack Foundation,
Panasas, Peraso, Pixelworks, Plume Design, Portworx, Pure Storage, Qualcomm,
Rackspace, Rambus, Rayvolt E-Bikes, Red Hat, Samsung Electronics, Silver Peak,
SONY, Springpath, Sprint, Stratus Technologies, Symantec, Synaptics,
Syniverse, TensTorrent, Tobii Technology, Twitter, Unity Technologies, Verizon
Communications, Vidyo, Wave Computing, Wellsmith, Xilinx, Zebra, which may be cited
in this article.

3M Sues Seller on Amazon Who Charged Grossly Inflated Prices for Fake, Defective
and Damaged N95 Respirators Falsely Advertised Under 3M Brand

ST. PAUL, Minn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--3M filed a legal action today in federal court in
California, asserting that a seller on Amazon defrauded its customers by charging
grossly inflated prices for fake, defective, and damaged respirator products. The
lawsuit alleges that Mao Yu and his affiliated companies falsely advertised as
third-party sellers on Amazon under the 3M brand. The defendants, according to 3M’s
complaint, charged unsuspecting customers more than $350,000 when the customers
responded to false listings that claimed to be reselling authentic N95 respirators,
while actually selling damaged and fake goods at highly-inflated prices. 3M alleges
that the defendants charged prices for the fraudulent respirators that exceeded as
much as 20 times 3M’s N95 respirator list prices. Amazon learned that the
defendants misrepresented what would be delivered for these exorbitant prices, and
that buyers had received non-3M respirators, fewer items than purchased, products
in suspect packaging, and defective or damaged items. Amazon has blocked the
accounts on its platform. The complaint seeks both monetary damages and injunctive
relief to require the defendants to cease their unlawful activities. 3M will donate
any damages recovered to COVID-19-related nonprofit organizations. “3M customers
deserve authentic products at fair prices, and this scam is aimed at exploiting the
demand for our critical products during the pandemic using 3M’s name connected with
price gouging and counterfeiting,” said Denise Rutherford, 3M Senior Vice
President, Corporate Affairs. “Our collaboration with Amazon is one of the
important ways we are working to prevent and combat fraud, and we will report this
unlawful activity to law enforcement, as well.” “There is no place for
counterfeiting or price gouging on Amazon and we’re proud to be working with 3M to
hold these bad actors accountable,” said Dharmesh Mehta, Amazon Vice President,
Customer Trust and Partner Support. “Amazon has long-standing policies against
counterfeiting and price gouging and processes in place to proactively block
suspicious products and egregious prices. When we find a bad actor violating our
policies, we work quickly to remove the products and take action on the bad actor,
as we’ve done here, and we welcome collaboration from brands like 3M.” 3M has not
changed the prices it charges for respirators as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Including this legal action 3M has filed more than a dozen lawsuits in its fight
against fraud, price gouging and counterfeiting. 3M has won five temporary
restraining orders and four preliminary injunction orders from courts across the
country that put a stop to other defendants’ unlawful and unethical profiteering
from the pandemic. To date, 3M has successfully secured the removal of more than
3000 websites with fraudulent or counterfeit product offerings from e-commerce
platforms around the world, more than 4000 false or deceptive social media posts,
and more than 100 deceptive internet addresses. 3M has deployed its internal and
external litigation team in its efforts to combat fraud. In this case, 3M is
represented by Kevin Mayer and Andrea D’Ambra of Norton Rose Fulbright, and
Christopher Weimer of Pirkey Barber. Resources to fight fraud 3M has created a
hotline to call for information on how to help identify authentic 3M products and
to ensure products are from 3M authorized distributors. That number, in the U.S.
and Canada, is (800) 426-8688. If customers have concerns about potentially
fraudulent activity, price gouging, or counterfeit 3M products, they can report
their concerns at 3M’s website. About 3M At 3M, we apply science in collaborative
ways to improve lives daily. With $32 billion in sales, our 96,000 employees
connect with customers all around the world. Learn more about 3M’s creative
solutions to the world’s problems at www.3M.com or on Twitter @3M or @3MNews.

Trump leans on ‘fake news’ line to combat reports of West Wing dysfunction

U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House | Michael Reynolds/EPA The president
appears especially irked by the growing narrative of Bannon as the real power in
the White House. By Eli Stokols and Nolan D. McCaskill 2/6/17, 8:52 PM CET Updated
2/6/17, 9:06 PM CET President Donald Trump on Monday lashed out via Twitter at a
series of news reports revealing the turmoil inside the White House, leaning on his
crutch of “fake news” as he struggles to control a hardening narrative about a
dysfunctional West Wing. One of his missives came from Air Force One en route to
Tampa, Fla., as Trump panned a New York Times report that detailed the friction
inside his administration and its early stumbles. "The failing @nytimes writes
total fiction concerning me. They have gotten it wrong for two years, and now are
making up stories & sources!" Trump tweeted at 11:32 a.m., ignoring the fact
that many of his top advisers were quoted by name in the story. Trump seemed
particularly incensed by reports and parodies about chief strategist Steve Bannon
being the actual decision-maker in the White House. “I call my own shots, largely
based on an accumulation of data, and everyone knows it. Some FAKE NEWS media, in
order to marginalize, lies!” Trump tweeted. The message came at 7:01 a.m., 52
minutes after Joe Scarborough, whose MSNBC morning show the president is known to
watch religiously, had suggested that "maybe Bannon's calling all the shots."
Scarborough's comments — and Trump's frustrations — are the outgrowth of a media
narrative that has mushroomed over the last several days, initially with Bannon's
face gracing last week's Time magazine cover, which declared him "The Great
Manipulator," and then in stinging satire on “Saturday Night Live” that presented
Bannon as the real owner of the Resolute Desk. Trump is increasingly turning to his
“fake news” line to try to puncture swelling storylines that are unflattering to
his nascent presidency. The sketch comedy franchise opened with Alec Baldwin
portraying the president in the Oval Office, where he was joined by Bannon, dressed
in a grim reaper costume while indulging Trump's worst impulses by encouraging his
bellicosity during calls to foreign leaders. The skit parodied reports of Trump’s
poor statesmanship during phone calls with foreign leaders and brought to life The
New York Times’ editorial board’s opinion last week — headlined “President Bannon?”
— suggesting that the former Breitbart executive “is positioning himself … as the
de facto president.” In the story that drew Trump's ire Monday, the Times also
reported that Bannon is “the president’s dominant adviser, despite Mr. Trump’s
anger that he was not fully briefed on details of the executive order he signed
giving his chief strategist a seat on the National Security Council.” Attendees
line the Mall as they watch ceremonies to swear in Donald Trump on Inauguration Day
| Lucas Jackson/Getty Images Two weeks after an adviser memorably characterized the
falsehoods coming from the White House as "alternative facts," Trump is
increasingly turning to his “fake news” line to try to puncture swelling storylines
that are unflattering to his nascent presidency and counter the unfounded claims
coming out of the White House. That’s despite the fact that not too long ago,
Trump’s critics were the ones pushing the “fake news” term to describe false
reports that proliferated on the internet during the presidential campaign to boost
Trump’s candidacy. Trump further hammered the media on Monday afternoon, telling
servicemembers at MacDill Air Force Base that the press is taking a pass on
reporting terrorist attacks. "Radical Islamic terrorists are determined to strike
our homeland as they did on 9/11, as they did from Boston to Orlando to San
Bernardino, and all across Europe. You have seen what happened in Paris and Nice.
All over Europe, it's happening," Trump said. "It's gotten to a point where it's
not even being reported. And in many cases the very, very dishonest press doesn't
want to report it. They have their reasons, and you understand that." Kellyanne
Conway, Trump’s White House counsel, is caught up in her own “fake news”
controversy after she cited last week a made-up terrorist attack in Bowling Green,
Kentucky, to justify the administration’s highly controversial travel and refugee
ban. While she later called it an honest mistake and blasted other “fake” stories,
Cosmopolitan magazine reported on Monday that Conway cited the same non-existent
“massacre” in an interview with one of its reporters on Jan. 29. Conway also
sparred with CNN after reports emerged that the White House had offered to have her
appear on its Sunday morning show and that CNN said no. “False. I could do no live
Sunday shows this week BC of family. Plus, I was invited onto CNN today &
tomorrow. CNN Brass on those emails,” Conway tweeted. CNN’s communications team
then responded on Twitter pushing back against Conway’s explanation.
“@KellyannePolls was offered to SOTU on Sunday by the White House. We passed. Those
are the facts,” the message read. Even right-leaning Fox News is questioning some
of the baseless claims coming from Trump and his team. In the interview that aired
as part of Sunday's Super Bowl pregame show, Bill O'Reilly twice pressed Trump to
back up his unfounded assertion about millions of illegal votes during last year's
election. “Any negative polls are fake news, just like the CNN, ABC, NBC polls in
the election" — Donald Trump "You say things you can’t back up factually, and as
the president, if you say, for example, that there are 3 million illegal aliens who
voted and then you don’t have the data to back it up, some people are gonna say
that it’s irresponsible for a president to say that," O'Reilly said to Trump. "Is
there any validity to that?" "Many people have come out and said I’m right. You
know that," the president responded. "I know, but you’ve gotta have data to back
that up," O'Reilly shot back. Moments later, as the president repeated his
unfounded claim, O'Reilly pressed again for more corroboration. "A lot of people
have come out and said that I am correct," Trump said. U.S. President Donald J.
Trum at the White House | Michael Reynolds/EPA "But the data has to show that 3
million illegals voted," O'Reilly countered. "Forget that," Trump said. "Forget all
of that." And Trump’s obsession with the poll numbers also reared its head on
Monday. Trump’s explanation for the shaky support of his presidency and his
policies? Fake news. “Any negative polls are fake news, just like the CNN, ABC, NBC
polls in the election. Sorry, people want border security and extreme vetting,” he
tweeted. Madeline Conway contributed to this report. Related stories on these
topics: