WEB AND MOBILE FRAUD
Fake jabs sold online prompts call for better protection
The UK Government is still failing to do enough to protect the public from counterfeit fraudsters, according to the Anti-Counterfeiting Group (ACG).
With the current pandemic increasing the risk of UK consumers being targeted by fraudsters selling fake products, especially items which could endanger lives, the ACG is lobbying the Government to ensure the UK public is protected to the same standard as the US and EU.
The watchdog argues that the Online Harms White Paper delivered to Parliament in December does nothing to recognise the growing threat of dangerous counterfeit goods and the Government has constantly refused to accept the argument that counterfeiting is now a health and safety threat, despite the appearance of fake anti-COVID vaccines, remedies and medical equipment.
As the Government continues to roll out their vaccination programme, more and more fake COVID-19 listings are appearing. A recent study revealed almost 650 listings in one day for counterfeit vaccines on 12 separate dark web sites.
The City of London Police IP Crime Unit (PIPCU), have recently charged a fraudster, claiming to work for the NHS, who injected a 92-year-old woman with fake COVID-19 serum.
With consumers currently being forced to buy more online, fraudsters are using increasingly innovative techniques to trick buyers into parting with their money, such as paid influencers, bogus reviews, convincing packaging, sponsored and sham social media reports, that disappear after 24 hours.
Moreover, the use of encrypted instant messaging tools and trusted payment methods like PayPal give direct access to consumers. In one month alone, Google blocked and removed 2.7 billion ads, the equivalent of 5,000 bad ads per minute.
Phil Lewis, from the ACG, says, "The development of an online harms regime is the perfect opportunity to put measures in place to protect members of the public from counterfeiters and the dangerous goods they sell, that can put consumers out of pocket but also damage their health."
"We are being left behind when it comes to legislation. The US and EU are forging ahead with important steps to protect consumers and businesses from the growing dangers of counterfeiting and illicit trade. While the European Commission's draft Digital Services Act sets its sights on giving e-commerce platforms greater responsibility to proactively screen and prevent the sale of counterfeit goods from appearing on their sites, the US INFORM Act also aims to build greater transparency by improving processes to check the validity of third-party sellers."
The UK is the 5th largest consumer market globally and is hugely attractive to counterfeiters. Now more than ever it is time for the UK to follow the US and EU lead and ensure that consumers and business are protected online from the sale of dangerous fakes in the same way that they are protected from physical markets and retail sellers.
