Public urged to be vigilant vs fake goods, scams

MANILA, Philippines — The National Committee on Intellectual Property Rights (NCIPR), led by the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL), is reminding individuals to be vigilant of counterfeit goods  and rising cases of online piracy amid the coronavirus disease 2019 or COVID-19 pandemic. 

“Counterfeiters will likely ride on the wave of the public’s spending behavior as observed historically in both local and global markets,” IPOPHL director general Rowel Barba said.

This, as IPOPHL received reports of counterfeit N95 respirators being sold at the height of the Taal Volcano eruption in January when demand picked up for face masks, with individuals wanting to protect themselves from the ash fall and stores were running out of supply. 

Demand remains high for face masks given the COVID-19 crisis. 

“The gaping hole between supply and demand all over the world is also an easy entry point for counterfeiters. We saw this week that amid the continuing global mask shortage, mask maker 3M  filed its first COVID-related lawsuit for alleged trademark infringement, among others. Like IP rights holders, various agencies of the 12-member NCIPR have their eyes wide open amid the crisis,” Barba said. 

Apart from masks and other personal protection gears,  products with high demand like pharmaceuticals, hygiene products, food and beverages are also likely to attract counterfeiting activities.

Last year, food and drinks, particularly alcohol, as well as pharmaceutical products accounted for two percent of the counterfeit goods seized by NCIPR. 

“Given that they bypassed quality control checks, counterfeit medicines and food and beverage products can cause irreparable damage to health. Specifically, contraband protective gears will likely erase the gains we have been achieving so far in containing the spread of the virus. Needless to say, counterfeit versions of these basic essentials cost lives,” Barba said. 

He said individuals are encouraged to report speculated counterfeit products being sold on any online marketplace or brick-and-mortar stores to [email protected].

Apart from counterfeit products, he also warned of the rise in online piracy. 

Data from IPOPHL’s Enforcement Office (IEO) showed there were 21 counterfeiting and piracy complaints for March alone, exceeding last year’s total of 14 complaints. 

Of the complaints received in March, four or 19 percent involved piracy, particularly illegal streaming and downloading of movies.  

“The findings are expected given that many are scrambling to find various sources of entertainment during the quarantine period. We have taken action by informing the rights holders, associations, and involved platforms and coordinating with them for the successful removal of the offending posts or offers,” Barba said.

While Facebook was the top platform used for piracy, he said the social media platform was cooperative and immediately took down the posts.

Even with Luzon under enhanced community quarantine to curb the spread of COVID-19, the IEO continues to accept and act on reports by informing rights holders and calling out unscrupulous sellers and/or the marketplaces involved in the suspected illegal activity. 

Seizure of counterfeit goods and case filings have been suspended however as courts issuing the search warrants that permit the raids are not in operation.

In the meantime, NCIPR is relying on member agencies Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) in the fight against counterfeits, given their authorization to inspect quarantine checkpoints and borders, respectively. 

“We were assured by the PNP and Customs that their inspection efforts will be thorough enough to capture counterfeits, arrest their movement, and prevent them from exacerbating our present burdens. Everyone in the NCIPR, thankfully, remains committed to the fight against counterfeiting  given its life-and-death stake here,”  IPOPHL deputy director general Teodoro Pascua said. 

NCIPR is responsible for coming up and implementing plans and policies for IPR protection and enforcement. 

Aside from IPOPHL, PNP and BOC, the NCIPR is composed of the Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Justice, Food and Drug Administration, National Bureau of Investigation, Optical Media Board, National Book Development Board, Office of the Special Envoy on Transnational Crime, Department of the Interior and Local Government, and National Telecommunications Commission.