“Buying a counterfeit is no longer a trivial act”

Counterfeiting is a "key source of funding for organized crime," and affects everything from contact lenses to toys and car parts, the French Manufacturers' Union (Unifab) warned on Monday, calling for coordinated action.

The Italian Camorra, the Chinese Triads, Hezbollah, Mexican cartels, and even the North Korean regime, among others, use it both to launder money and to finance their actions, according to a report by Unifab, an association for the defense and promotion of intellectual property.

"What consumers need to understand is that buying a counterfeit is no longer like it was in the 1980s; it is no longer a trivial act," commented Delphine Sarfati-Sobreira, CEO of Unifab and president of the Global Anti-Counterfeiting Group (GACG). "Today, buying a counterfeit means financing a criminal network; it means condoning all the barbaric acts we condemn," she added.

However, the report notes, "unlike drug or arms trafficking, which are subject to severe penalties, counterfeiting operates within a legal framework that is still too lax, leaving criminals considerable room for action." However, counterfeit products affect all sectors: textiles, cosmetics, toys, electronics, food and alcohol, automotive and industrial parts, etc.

"More than a third of consumers (...) thought the product was authentic," Delphine Sarfati-Sobreira points out, citing an Ifop study. However, consumers "take a lot of risks, (...) for their health and safety." Hygiene products that cause burns, untested car parts, watches equipped with hands that reflect radioactive products "because they're the cheapest": the examples are legion, she warns.

"The rise of online commerce and social media has amplified this threat," and "counterfeiting is now benefiting from uninhibited promotion, orchestrated by certain influencers," laments Unifab. The organization regrets that "the legal framework is struggling to adapt to the rapid expansion of online commerce, (that) international cooperation remains too fragmented, and (that) consumers continue to fuel this market."

Unifab calls for "a global, coordinated, and aggressive response," with "a concerted strategy mobilizing all stakeholders: states, businesses, judicial authorities, digital platforms, law enforcement agencies, and consumers themselves." According to OECD figures cited by Unifab, counterfeiting accounts for 2.5% of global trade.