Politicians backing the proposal say that the new bill is an important step towards targeting the worst offenders, against whom law enforcers and rights holders currently have limited tools at their disposal. The Protect IP bill is an amended version of the contentious Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act, which lawmakers narrowly failed to adopt in late 2010.

If the Protect IP Act came into force, infringing sites would be removed from the internet’s address books, making them hard to find. The act would also force search engines to stop listing infringing sites in their indexes. In addition to the US government, copyright holders would be also be able to take action by applying for court orders to have sites blocked.

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Up until now ticket sellers only sent out tickets just before performances, even if customers bought them several months in advance. Organisers intended to give counterfeiters as little time as possible to copy the originals. However, in practice this has led to many people buying tickets from fake websites and not realising that the tickets would never arrive until it was too late.

According to the police, organisers’ delay in the sending of tickets makes it difficult to prove that fraudulent websites never had the tickets they were claiming to sell. It is estimated that £168m are lost each year through ticket scams in the UK alone.

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Google’s Senior Vice President and General Counsel, Kent Walker, said that because counterfeiters are a moving target, Google was constantly striving to improve its practices to keep pace. A new complaint form was introduced in 2009 to enable brand owners to swiftly notify Google of misuse. Google will now reduce its average response time to 24 hours or less.

The company has also committed to working more closely with brand owners whose goods are often copied illegally to identify infringements as quickly as possible. Finally, a new help centre page has also been set up.

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Counterfeit alcohol tends to come either in the form of rebottled wine, i.e. cheaper wine poured into more expensive bottles, or in the form of alcohol made in illegal factories. Therefore, in addition to finding counterfeit alcohol on the shelves of off-licences, government officials also discovered several instances of illegal alcohol production and bottling factories in the UK. Last October for example, 25,000 litres of counterfeit vodka along with bottling and labelling equipment were seized in Manchester.

Experts warn of the health risks associated with the consumption of counterfeit alcohol, which may contain a number of harmful substances. Some of the illegal vodka seized was found to contain high levels of methanol, which is normally used in anti-freezing liquids or in fuels. To spot fakes, consumers are advised to look out for spelling mistakes on labels, for labels that are not straight and to check whether all bottles are filled to the same level.

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“Falsified medicines are silent killers, either because they are devoid of effect or because they contain toxic substances that may harm, or even kill, those who take them. The absence of a legal framework encourages counterfeiting, an organized crime. We have been witnessing a huge growth of this criminal activity, with an increase of 400% in seizures of fake drugs since 2005. Protecting patient safety is the core aim of this directive”, said European MP Marisa Matias, who led discussions in Parliament. The resolution was adopted with 569 votes in favour, 12 against and 7 abstentions.

An estimated that 1% of medicinal products currently sold to the European public through the legal supply chain are falsified and the share is growing. In other parts of the world, up to 30% of the medicines on sale may be fake. In particular, more and more innovative and life-saving drugs are counterfeit.

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Angela Campagnoni, the owner of a reputable modelling agency in Halifax called City Models Talent Agency, was warned by the mother of a 15-year-old girl that the teenager had been contacted on Facebook by a person who claimed to be one of Angela’s agents. The fake scout told the girl she could become a model and asked her to provide a list of friends, as well as pictures of herself in underwear.

Angela was shocked and replied that not only had she never heard of the woman, but also that her company does not recruit through that social network and would never send out email messages asking for pictures of barely dressed under-aged girls. The person was thus clearly a fake talent scout.

Campagnoni also reported this scam to the police. Halifax Regional Police Const. Brian Palmeter commented: “I would certainly think that the majority of people would find this an odd request, unless they’ve made the contact with a respectable agency, a respectable business and there’s a legitimate reason for such a picture or that type of information to be sent”.

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According to the SiteJabber community – SiteJabber is a portal that encourages shoppers to rate and review websites – the ten counterfeit gifts that are most likely to appear under our Christmas trees belong to the following categories:

1. Boots

2. Handbags and other leather items

3. Jewellery

4. Athletic jerseys

5. Perfumes

6. Trainers (sneakers – for our American readers)

7. Velour tracksuits

8. Luxury watches

9. Ski wear

10. DVDs

As you know, fake goods are illegal and often of very poor quality; they could be unsafe and are frequently produced in factories where minimum labour and environmental standards are not met. A good way to avoid fakes is to stay away from deals that seem too-good-to-be-true and to only purchase in trusted shops, both offline and in the online world.

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This is why information campaigns and police operations are being launched in several countries to fight and prevent the sale of counterfeit products, particulary in light of the upcoming Christmas festivities.

In Edinburgh, police officers are visiting shops in the city looking for illegal items. Local shopkeepers have also been advised to be vigilant should they be offered anything suspicious. As an example, a recent survey carried by YouGov showed that 24% of adults bought fake DVDs without considering that the illegal market often funds drug smuggling and human trafficking.

Edinburgh’s council spokesperson for the environment, councillor Robert Aldridge, said: “With the festive season fast approaching, it is really important for people to be extra careful about what they buy. Not only can counterfeit goods be unsafe, purchasing such items can help fund criminal organisations.”

Kate Johnston, Crimestoppers Scotland national manager, said: “Christmas is a time when many are trying to find ways to reduce costs. I would urge the public not to be tempted to buy often cheaper fake goods. The consequences are far wider than the simple transaction. It can fund serious crimes such as human trafficking and drug crime which can harm our community.”

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The confiscations, carried out by the Irish Medicines Board (IMB), were conducted within the framework of Interpol’s Operation Pangea III. The campaign touched 45 countries in which several online sales of counterfeit and illegal medicines were targeted.

The counterfeit drugs seized during the operations included erectile dysfunction treatments, mood stabilisers, as well as a slimming coffee that, along with alleged weight loss benefits, claimed to be a cure for cancer.

Pat O’Mahony, chief executive of IMB, warned that, when buying drugs from those websites, “purchasers have no way of knowing what these medicines really contain, where they were made or the effect they might have on your health.”

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Algirdas Šemeta, EU Commissioner for taxation, customs, anti-fraud and audit, said: “Customs operations not only safeguard the EU’s financial interests but also protect our citizens and legitimate businesses. Operation Sirocco shows the great results we can achieve by working in cooperation with our international partners to combat smuggling and fraud. I would like to congratulate all participants for their efforts in this joint customs operation and strongly encourage more such joint actions in the future.”

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