Amazon Fakes, Fraud and Scams Await Holiday Shoppers

Buying on Amazon doesn't mean safe, authentic or value purchases.

December 6, 2018 - Los Angeles, CA – Consumers looking to Amazon for holiday purchases should recognize that Amazon is not a safe marketplace, nor providing authentic goods. Consumers may, in fact, be purchasing counterfeit, fake or replica goods for themselves, or as gifts, that are dangerous or deadly. One-half of Amazon's sales are from unvetted third-party global sellers, many from China.

Most consumers would be shocked to learn Amazon is direct retailer of counterfeit goods; "ships from and sold by Amazon.com." For example, Apple® reported that 90% of Apple products it purchased directly from Amazon were counterfeit. Additionally, Amazon's Prime, Amazon Warehouse Deals, and the Fulfilled by Amazon ("FBA") offerings are also plagued with counterfeit, fake and replica items. Even Amazon's coveted "Amazon's Choice" endorsement may be promoting a counterfeit product.

Last year, one-third of online shoppers received an unexpected surprise - they received a counterfeit product from U.S. and cross-border scam artists. Imagine the embarrassment of giving a counterfeit gift.

Before buying on Amazon, consumers should consider these facts;

• The advertised bargain may be no bargain at all. A market study found Costco's prices 17% lower than Amazons.
• Amazon reports that they receive an infringement complaint 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.
• Alarmingly, when Amazon learns of the counterfeit items, they won't tell buyers they received a fake, even dangerous or potentially deadly items. Of course, the buyers would then be entitled to a refund.
• Search results and product reviews are no indication of authenticity, quality or even related to the product listed. Worldwide scammers work to outsmart and trick Amazon's automated ranking systems with fake reviews and ratings, while some sellers pay off workers inside Amazon to gain competitive information reports the Wall Street Journal.
• Amazon still takes a transaction fee for each counterfeit item sold, and after skirting secondary liability for the sales, Amazon didn't pay any federal income taxes after a whopping $5.6 billion in profit in 2017.

Some common scams on Amazon;

• Amazon sellers can list just about anything they want, including counterfeits and products they don't possess, and then forward your order to other global sellers (often from China) for delivery to you.
• Sellers list items and then advise of delayed delivery. The sellers offer a tracking number, but never ship the item. After a few weeks, Amazon forwards the payment to the seller, but the buyer never receives the product.
• Products may be "grey market" or unauthorized imports that do not carry a manufacturer's warranty. Deceived buyers learn they don't have a warranty when the product fails, or is deemed counterfeit.
• Sellers can list a cheap "teaser" products to gain a history of positive reviews and seller feedback, then change the listing image and description to a counterfeit or replica, but retain the reviews and ratings.

If that's not enough to discourage consumers from buying on Amazon;

• Amazon's shady counterfeit practices have not escaped the attention of federal investigators. The U.S. Government Accountability Office ("GAO") recently 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.
• Birkenstock, the global footwear icon, slammed Amazon as "an accomplice" of the fraudsters. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) placed orders with Amazon and found that 44 of the 194 top CD's delivered were counterfeit. Swiss watch company Swatch (Longines, Omega and Blancpain) scrapped selling on Amazon when Amazon refused to "proactively police its site for counterfeits and unauthorized retailers." Smaller manufacturers complain that their business is being destroyed by Amazon counterfeit sales.
• Forbes deemed the e-commerce giants a "cesspool of counterfeits and other illegal and potentially dangerous goods."

Through huge legal loopholes, and virtually immune to prosecution, IP laws and safety standards, Amazon continues to enable and facilitate criminal activity and profit from counterfeit sales which destroy manufacturers and directly impact consumer safety, jobs and public trust.

Consumers can support their local retailers and shop online with the major authorized retailers (Kroger, Costco, Home Depot, Target, Lowes, Best Buy, etc.) who offer consumers competitive purchase options. "Costco is the cheapest by a landslide, with an average discount of 19% on items where there was a price discrepancy" reports Business Insider, and many retailers will price match online sellers.