What are counterfeit goods?

A counterfeit is an item that uses someone else’s trademark without their permission. By making or selling a counterfeit, criminals seek to profit unfairly from the trademark owner’s reputation.

The International AntiCounterfeit Coalition says counterfeiting is a crime involving the theft of someone’s trademark. Businesses – both small and large – use trademarks to help consumers like you identify their products. A trademark is most often a word, phrase or symbol that identifies the source or origin of a particular good or service sold in commerce. Counterfeiting is a fraudulent imitation (a forgery) of a trusted brand and product, and it is a serious crime. Under US federal law, for example, criminal counterfeiting offences can be punishable by life in prison and up to US$30 million in fines. Counterfeiting can also be prosecuted as a felony in most states in the US. Counterfeiting damages a company’s reputation and consumer confidence in the global market. It affects businesses and consumers alike by sowing mistrust in genuine products made by reputable brands. Replica goods, however, are close copies of originals. They are modelled after the original famous product. Therefore, even though they share a striking resemblance with the original goods, they are not passed off as being the real deal.

Replica goods are considered to be legitimate copies because they do not bear the branded product’s trademark. So, while a replica might have the same feature and functionality of a famous or branded product, it usually carries a different symbol or logo, which is admittedly similar to the famous one. As a result, they are not outrightly illegal.