Feds Warn Shoppers: Knockoffs Harder To Detect In Digital Age
LONG BEACH (CBSLA.com) — As the Christmas shopping season kicks into high gear, federal officials Friday warned consumers that detecting counterfeit goods is getting tougher as more products are sold online.
"Criminal organizations and, in this case, counterfeiters have also taken advantage of online. They've also seen it as a marketplace where they can sell their wares," Special Agent Claude Arnold of Homeland Security Investigations told CBS2/KCAL9's Dave Lopez.
U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Department of Homeland Security officials brought Lopez and other reporters to the Homeland Security Investigations Office in Long Beach to showcase examples of recently seized counterfeit merchandise.
KNX 1070's Pete Demetriou reports the seized goods including cosmetics tainted with animal urine, lead-laced jewelry, and high-priced knockoffs of popular handbag brands sold to unwitting buyers at five-figure prices.
Last year, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and HSI seized more than 24,000 counterfeit items nationwide, up 7 percent compared to the previous year. The seized goods marked an equivalent street value of more than $1.7 billion for genuine products, authorities said.
Arnold said the federal government also loses out when counterfeiters sell their wares.
"It's stealing from all of us because the U.S. government's revenue is based on legitimate products, taxes, et cetera," Arnold said. "Counterfeiters don't pay taxes."
Consumers can avoid being scammed by looking out for websites with unusual addresses or a lack of contact information, or if the website offers models not seen anywhere else, according to Arnold.
If they do provide a contact number, Arnold said it's usually obvious if they're legitimate by how they answer the phone: "The counterfeiters, often times, they'll answer the phone with 'Hello.' They'll answer it in a foreign language...if you start asking questions they won't be helpful at all."
Arnold recommended buying brand-name goods from recognizable vendors, such as Target, Macy's, Walmart or Nordstrom.
