Despite Claims, eBay Continues to Allow Counterfeits

eBay is blind to repeat fake product sellers

July 06, 2016, - Los Angeles, CA – It’s an age-old crime: stealing. But it’s not about picking a pocket or holding up a bank. It’s robbing people of their ideas, inventions, and creative expressions—what’s called “intellectual property” -- everything from consumer products and replacement parts, to movies, music and software. It's the business of counterfeit and fake goods, and its a $1.7 trillion criminal enterprise.

What’s eBay's claim? “We don't allow replicas, counterfeit items, or unauthorized copies to be listed on eBay.”

Not only does eBay^® (EBAY) allow counterfeit products to be listed, alarmingly, eBay allows the sellers to remain despite repeat notifications of hundred-of-thousands of confirmed counterfeit and fake items. eBay even sends direct email solicitations to consumers to purchase fake items – items that don’t even exist in the manufacturer’s product line - but bear their registered trademark.

Responding to manufacturer's complaints, The Counterfeit Report^®, an authorized agent, submitted over 1,000 Notices of Claimed Infringement representing 44,182 counterfeit products to eBay's often touted intellectual property Verified Rights Owner Program ("VeRO"). VeRO, staffed by approximately 20 employees, claims to take down approximately half-a-million listings each year when notified by rights owners. However, little or no consumer protection is offered when the listings and sellers are not removed in a timely manner, or not at all.

When the same listings and sellers remained after hundreds of fake product notifications, The Counterfeit Report complained to VeRO. VeRO advised they were "backlogged for weeks" in removing listings -- hardly an acceptable practice when the sellers were often listing the fake products for just a few days.

Requests to block repeat sellers who had listed fake products dozens of times, including one over over 250 times, were brushed away. "We are not going to stop them from listing something" said Joe at eBay VeRO support, "We will only act on the NOCI (Notice of Claimed Infringement) you send to us" and "in the order received."

If listings were removed, sellers simply re-list the fake products in what is best described as a whack-a-mole process. Disturbingly, buyers purchasing the counterfeit items are not notified by eBay they may have a fake, be in danger, or eligible for a refund. Their counterfeit purchase on eBay is hidden from the buyer with a deceptive statement in the buyers account purchase history; "If you've already sent payment, the sale should process as normal and you don't have anything to worry about."

For example, consumers that purchased the products shown below received a fake.

(Clockwise from left – Photo: The Counterfeit Report^®)

• SanDisk^® 64GB microSDHC memory card. The microSDHC^® standard is limited to a maximum capacity of 32GB, but over 40,000 fake SanDisk^®, Kingston^®, Samsung^® and unbranded Generic microSDHC^® cards were sold by test purchase eBay sellers in capacities above 32GB. Data is lost or overwritten when the actual capacity, often far less than the printed capacity, is reached.  (view the alert)
  
• Vans^® does not make iPhone 6 cases – but they are common on eBay.  (view the alert)
  
• The Lunatik^® TakTik^® Extreme model case is not made for the Apple iPhone 6^®, yet The Counterfeit Report made dozens of purchases of poor quality counterfeit Lunatik^® products representing over 160,000 sales to duped eBay consumers. (view the alert)
  
• The authentic Skunk2^® performance shift knob is only available in a matte titanium finish. The Counterfeit Report reported 1,663 colored fakes listed on eBay in red, neo, blue, green, gold and chrome. And yet, the items remain. (view the alert)
  
• The Monster^® trademarked Tron T1 Headphone was never produced or sold by Monster Products, yet unsuspecting consumers can be duped out of over $300 for this fake Monster product. (view the alert)
  
• Dr. Numb^® Over-the-Counter 5% Lidocaine topical pharmaceutical is not manufactured in a 10gr. size. Unsuspecting consumers receive a fake product with unknown ingredients, and an obvious spelling error. (view the alert)

The Consumer Danger
e-Commerce giant eBay® (EBAY) is no stranger to allegations of selling counterfeit goods and by not adhering to its own policies or cracking down on counterfeit goods listed on its website, it allows, to the sale of millions of dollars of counterfeit goods to unsuspecting consumers, while collecting transaction fees on each sale.

Companies that facilitate criminal activity and benefit from the proceeds of dishonest actions which impact jobs, consumer safety and public trust create a public perception of deception and impunity. However, reputation damage is only a small part of the problem: counterfeiting costs US manufacturers over $250 billion, US workers over 750,000 jobs, and the manufacturer’s brand integrity is tarnished or destroyed..

What should you do if you receive an eBay counterfeit?

• Never return the counterfeit item. It is a violation of US Postal Regulations, Federal Law, and the only evidence for your refund claim.
  
• Notify eBay immediately at (866) 540-3229, and open a refund claim under eBay’s Money Back Guarantee.
  
• If eBay doesn’t satisfy your claim, dispute the credit card charge. You have the counterfeit product as proof of your claim and to support the negative feedback you leave for the seller to protect other consumers.
  
• Some cases or arbitrary eBay decisions may require more aggressive action.

Reporters interested in seeing the counterfeit items may contact The Counterfeit Report^®