Amazon Is Flooded With Fakes, Fraud, And Scams

Is Amazon America's Biggest Consumer Rip-off ?

June 11, 2019, Los Angeles, CA – Consumers face a real challenge when shopping Amazon's manipulative e-commerce marketplace -- dodging the fakes, fraud, and scams that plague the e-commerce giant.

Amazon is a free-flowing conduit that enables Amazon, and facilitates third-party global sellers, to flood the consumer market with an inexhaustible supply counterfeit, fraudulent, pirated, and replica items. Simply, consumers are deceived into spending good money for bad products while Amazon takes its transaction fee for each item sold.

Consumers would be shocked to learn that Amazon's own reports reveal they receive an infringement notice for 1 of every 100 customer page views, and over 100,000 brands have signed in to fight counterfeits on Amazon -- a shocking revelation of the enormity of Amazon's counterfeit problem. Amazon responds with its illusory policy "Products offered for sale on Amazon must be authentic. The sale of counterfeit products is strictly prohibited," but that claim is patently false. Both Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and Amazon Corporate Counsel Annasara Purcell confirmed Amazon will not remove counterfeit products from some of its global websites unless the trademark is registered in each country the item is listed in. However, the fake items can still be shipped worldwide.

Amazon is a direct retailer of counterfeit and fraudulent goods, e.g. "ships from and sold by Amazon.com." Amazon Prime, Amazon Warehouse Deals, and the Fulfilled by Amazon ("FBA") offerings are plagued with counterfeit, fraudulent, and replica items, some of which are endorsed with Amazon's coveted "Amazon's Choice" designation.

The remaining two-thirds of Amazon's sales are from 6 million unvetted global third-party "Marketplace" sellers that are allowed to sell just about anything they want, including an inexhaustible supply of counterfeit, fraudulent, and replica books, merchandise and OTC drugs. Many are shipped directly from China to Amazon's Fulfilled by Amazon ("FBA") distribution centers to hide the origin of the China goods and expedite delivery to just days.

The Counterfeit Report, an award-winning consumer advocate and counterfeit watchdog, found over 132,800 fake, fraudulent and replica items on Amazon and removed 59,159 fakes on behalf of infringed brand owners. Even with the assigned oversight of two Amazon Global Brand Relations Managers, Jason Noggle and Kaleigh Miller, an alarming pattern of deceptive practices and inaction is glaringly apparent, and complaints ignored;

• Dangerous and potentially deadly items remained for weeks, even months, despite hundreds of repeat infringement notices. Sellers often relist, use multiple usernames, or open new accounts.

• Amazon's seller evaluations (feedback) and product reviews are virtually worthless. Negative reviews are removed by Amazon, while sellers hire businesses to create dummy accounts, purchase products, and write fictitious reviews and complaints. The Counterfeit Report's product reviews to warn consumers have been repeatedly removed or blocked.
• Even so, consumers might still place their confidence in Amazon's guarantee; "We stand behind the products sold on our site with our A-to-z Guarantee." That could be true, but only if consumers were informed by Amazon (or knew) they received a counterfeit product. However, Amazon does not notify consumers they received a fake, even after being notified by the brand owner. Of course, consumers would then be entitled to a refund.

Amazon's shady counterfeit practices captured the attention of federal investigators. The U.S. Government Accountability Office ("GAO") conducted an undercover investigation of e-commerce counterfeit goods sales. The GAO reported that about 50% of the items it purchased from e-commerce websites, including Amazon (AMZN), were counterfeit. The Federal Communications Commission ("FCC") sent a letter to Amazon's CEO, Jeff Bezos, telling him to knock off the counterfeit electronics. And, recently assigned FTC oversight of Amazon could indicate there's potential for future antitrust investigations.

While Amazon was publicly denouncing counterfeits on its website, sharply contrasting activity was occurring in the background. Amazon argued and won a U.S. Appeal's Court decision to disavow itself from any responsibility for 'offering to sell' counterfeit products. Counterfeits, trademarks, and copyrights became the right holder's problem, and when there is an outcry over the infringements, Amazon claims it is simply a venue and immune from prosecution and liability. (Milo & Gabby, LLC. v. Amazon.com, Inc.)

Amazon's practices have earned it half of every U.S. retail dollar spent online, yet Amazon didn't pay any federal income taxes after topping $5.6 billion in profit in 2017 and $11.2 billion in 2018.

Forbes appropriately deemed the e-commerce giant a "cesspool of counterfeits and other illegal and potentially dangerous goods." The American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA), which represents more than 1,000 brands, has recommended that Amazon (AMZN) be added to the U.S. Notorious Markets List - a government list reserved for the worst online markets that enable and facilitate the world's largest criminal enterprise; copyright piracy, trademark infringement and counterfeit product sales.

America has matured its complexion blemished with corporate fraud, corruption, and scams; Enron, Tyco, Madoff, Lehman Bros., Cendant, HealthSouth, WorldCom, Theranos, and more. Will Amazon be added to the growing list?

Still, Amazon offers its all too often dismissal: "We have zero tolerance for abuse of our systems and if we find bad actors who have engaged in this behavior, we will take swift action against them, including terminating their selling accounts, deleting reviews, withholding funds, and taking legal action."

When?

The value of counterfeit and pirated goods is forecast to grow to $2.8 trillion and cost 5.4 million net job losses by 2022 highlights a 2017 International Chamber of Commerce Report.