The world’s most counterfeited brands
Most pirated products
The trade in counterfeited goods is worth a whopping $462 billion (£321bn) a year, according to the most recent figures from the OECD and the EU’s Intellectual Property Office, with a 2017 report predicting it could hit an astonishing $2.3 trillion (£1.7 trillion) by 2022. A massive 63% of pirate goods originate in China and American brands are the most faked. We reveal 30 of the world’s most ripped-off brands.
The North Face
The high-performance outdoor apparel favorite is one of the most counterfeited brands in the world. In December 2015, for instance, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) seized 50,000 fake North Face jackets from a warehouse in New York State. Clothing is the second most counterfeited sector in the world, with 17,995 seizures in 2013 (the photo shows North Face products intercepted by New Jersey State Police in Columbus, NJ).
Cartier
While its much sought-after watch and jewelry designs are frequently targeted by counterfeiters, Cartier is fighting back – the luxe French company won a court ruling in the UK ordering internet service providers to block websites selling fakes of its products (the photo shows 2,000 fake Cartier watches being crushed by a steamroller on New York's Fifth Avenue).
Hermès
Famously parodied by designer Brian ‘Homiès’ Lichtenberg, Hermès has often fallen prey to counterfeiters, with its Birkin bag, silk scarves and ties the most ripped-off products. Its leather goods have also been copied too: counterfeit Hermès belts worth $3.2 million (£2.3m) were impounded at the Port of Los Angeles in July 2015 (the photo shows thousands of Hermès wallets confiscated in Hakodake, Japan).
Levi's
The internet is awash with guides on how to spot a pair of phony Levi’s jeans and for very good reason. The definitive denim brand is no stranger to being imitated by fraudsters. Classic 501s and 550s are the most pirated styles, especially valuable vintage pre-1970 Big E 501s (the photo shows fake Levi's jeans on sale at a market in China).
Tiffany
The venerable American jewelry brand is highly covetable. Needless to say, its prestigious designs have been extensively plagiarized and Tiffany & Co. has even sued Costco for selling imitation diamond rings (the photo shows a fraudulent Tiffany & Co. website from China).
Coach
Coach leather goods are regularly targeted by counterfeiters. In 2014, Coach was awarded $5.5 million (£4m) in a judgment case against Swap Shop, a Florida flea market that was selling fake bags. Back in 2012, Coach won a $44 million (£32m) judgment against a New York-based mother-and-daughter team who were operating several fake Coach websites (the photo shows a pair of Coach sandals intercepted by the Department of Homeland Security in San Francisco).
Tamiflu
Fake fashion may be a problem but it doesn’t kill anybody. Counterfeit medication on the other hand, such as faux versions of the swine flu drug Tamiflu, are estimated to kill at least one million people a year, mostly in developing countries, according to world police agency Interpol.
Lipitor
Cholesterol-lowering statin drug Lipitor is another commonly counterfeited medication. In January 2016, a Florida man was jailed for 21 months for selling and distributing fake version of the drug, along with other lucrative meds.
Ugg
Love them or loathe them, the Australian brand’s sheepskin boots are perennially in demand, a fact that clearly hasn’t been lost on the counterfeiters of the world: 2.5 million pairs of faux Uggs have been seized since 2007. Shoes are the most counterfeited products in the world, with 27,119 seizures in 2013 (the photo shows fake Ugg boots displayed at the U.S. Justice Department in Washington DC).
Polo Ralph Lauren
The brand’s quintessential logo polo shirts, which sell for a premium, are relatively easy for counterfeiters to copy, which could explain why Polo Ralph Lauren is one of the most ripped-off brands in the world (the photo shows a faux Ralph Lauren polo shirt – complete with spelling mistakes – intercepted at East Midlands Airport in the UK).
Samsun
As dangerous as fake drugs, counterfeit cigarettes are a huge problem worldwide. In Turkey for example, 16.2 billion fake cigarettes a year are thought to be smoked in the country and President Erdogan has described fake tobacco as more dangerous than terrorism. Samsun, Turkey’s bestselling tobacco brand, is frequently targeted by counterfeiters.
Walt Disney Company
Fake merch is the scourge of the Walt Disney Company, especially ripped-off Frozen toys that are made in China. The Chinese authorities undertook a major crackdown on faux products in the run-up to the opening of Shanghai Disney Resort (the photo shows fake Mickey Mouse underwear on sale at a market in China).
Ray-Ban
The market is flooded with bogus sunglasses and Ray-Ban shades are the most counterfeited. The ‘best’ fakes are dead ringers for the real deal, but they tend to lack adequate UV protection and can potentially damage the eyes (the photo shows poor Ray-Ban Wayfarer rip-offs at a market in China).
Michael Kors
One of the world’s most faked brands, Michael Kors recently pulled out of the International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition because Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba had been given permission to join the Group. Alibaba is notorious for listing counterfeit products (the photo shows faux Michael Kors bags on sale at a market in China). Counterfeit Michael Kors products were also among a haul of fake goods worth €50,000 ($61,700/£44,450) seized by Irish police from a market in February 2018.
Gucci
Gucci has joined Michael Kors in quitting the International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition due to Alibaba’s involvement. The luxury Italian brand also announced a crackdown on paper copies of its bags in China – paper fakes are traditionally burned at funerals in the country as offerings for the deceased (the photo shows a poor copy of a Gucci make-up bag found in China).
Viagra
The Pharmaceutical Security Institute reports that 37% of all fake medicines seized are erectile dysfunction drugs, and unsurprisingly Viagra is now the second most counterfeited drug in the world (the photo shows bogus Viagra tablets that were seized by police in China).
Cialis
Cialis, another popular erectile dysfunction drug, has overtaken Viagra as the world’s most counterfeited medication. The problem is so acute, the US Food and Drug Association issued a warning in 2015 after a shipment of fake Cialis was intercepted in the mail system (the photo shows counterfeit Cialis and Viagra pills and boxes displayed at a news conference at the Sherman Block Sheriffs Headquarters in Los Angeles).
Chanel
From its quilted 2.55 bag and chic wallets to the popular No 5 fragrance, Chanel products are often targeted by counterfeiters who exploit the prestige of the French fashion house’s wares (the photo shows counterfeit Chanel, Prada and Louis Vuitton bags on sale at a market in China). A staggering 475,056 bottles of fake perfume, including Chanel, were seized at Los Angeles and Long Beach ports between October 2017 and January 2018. It also successfully sued 24 Amazon sellers who were selling fakes.
Louis Vuitton
Although Louis Vuitton is the world’s most pirated luxury brand, parent company LVMH is extremely proactive with regard to protecting its trademarks and copyright – the high-end French conglomerate spends €15 million ($18.5m/£13.4m) a year fighting the fakers (the photo shows a sales assistant displaying a fake Louis Vuitton monogram bag at a store in Beijing). South Korea said it seized more counterfeit Louis Vuitton products than from any other brand between 2012 and 2016.
Adidas
Fake sneakers are a major headache for the German sportswear giant. The most lucrative copies? Kanye West’s Yeezy shoes for Adidas Originals X, which are mainly sold online or on street corners.
Rolex
Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery but we’re not sure Rolex would agree. Rolex is the world’s most ripped-off watch brand, and cheap copies of bestsellers such as the Submariner and DateJust are pretty much ubiquitous (the photo shows a French customs official displaying two fake Rolex watches that were confiscated at France's Lyon–Saint-Exupéry Airport).
Marc Jacobs
Marc Jacobs’ eponymous brand has been ripped-off left, right and center on the internet, so much so that LVMH, the brand’s parent company, filed a trademark infringement lawsuit in the US against 66 websites allegedly selling fake Marc Jacobs goods.
Bulgari
The Italian jewelry and luxury goods brand is renowned for its distinctive designs, and illegal copies of Bulgari bling are all too common. The brand’s iconic B.Zero1 ring is the fakers’ favorite.
Samsung
The South Korean brand’s Galaxy line of smartphones is the most counterfeited, the bulk of which emanate from factories in China and end up on shifty websites that target unsuspecting customers in the West.
MAC Cosmetics
Fake make-up can contain anything from cyanide and lead to mercury, so counterfeits are potentially very dangerous. MAC Cosmetics is the world’s most counterfeited make-up brand. In 2015, a woman in the US was ordered to pay MAC just under $1 million (£720,000) for selling $1 million-worth of fake make-up.
Burberry
The British heritage brand’s iconic check design is much-imitated, even by other respectable fashion brands. JC Penney settled a lawsuit with Burberry over an alleged counterfeit plaid pattern.
OtterBox
OtterBox manufacturers waterproof, drop-proof iPhone cases, which are often pirated by counterfeiters who tout their wares online. In 2014, the company had 84,000 dubious listings removed from Alibaba, Amazon and eBay.
Apple
Apple is the most counterfeited tech brand in the world and, like fake medications, bogus Apple goods are potentially fatal. In 2013, Ma Ailuna, a 23-year-old flight attendant from Xinjiang, China died after she was electrocuted by a counterfeit iPhone charger (the photo shows two fake iPhones on display at a smartphone market in Shanghai).
SuperMatch
Kenyan cigarette brand SuperMatch is the most counterfeited brand in the world in terms of the actual number of units confiscated. While the health risks of smoking are bad enough, fake tobacco products have been found to contain human excrement, asbestos and dead flies
Nike
Nike is the world’s most counterfeited brand and its sneakers are fraudulently imitated by counterfeiters, particularly in China. Certain lines, such as the Flyknit range, are tricky to fake, but many Nike counterfeits are almost impossible to distinguish from the real McCoy (the photo shows faux Nike sneakers on sale at a market in Hisaronu, Turkey).
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