Consumers Risk Fake Certification Marks On Amazon and eBay Products

Counterfeit products bear the marks but skip legitimate safety testing

September 4, 2019, Los Angeles, CA – Counterfeit certification marks and fake products create a public risk for serious injury, illness, or even death. Consumers may believe they are buying safe, certified items but are getting a counterfeit that hasn’t undergone any legitimate safety testing. There is a significant value if products have a certification mark affixed to them, and fake products are an ideal target for counterfeit certification marks. Manufacturers who make an effort and investment to obtain safety certifications may lose their competitive advantage against competitors selling counterfeit products.

• A recent Wall Street Journal investigation found 4,152 items for sale on Amazon's website site that have been declared unsafe by federal agencies, are deceptively labeled, or are banned by federal regulators.

• U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) confiscated more than 16,000 hoverboards worth about $6 million.  The hoverboards used a counterfeit UL Mark and posed a health risk and fire risk.

• UL issued a notices that the extension cords, fire extinguisher, and fire sprinkler shown below bear counterfeit UL Certification Marks for the United States and Canada.

Certification marks are registered at the U.S. Trademark Office in the same basic manner as are trademarks and service marks for use on products to certify origin, material, mode of manufacture, quality, accuracy, or other characteristics of the goods or services. Some are the easily recognizable marks we have all seen or heard about; UL, GOOD HOUSEKEEPING, ENERGY STAR rated or FDA, others may be a mystery; CE and API engine oil quality. Fraudulent use on counterfeit products is common.

The bad news is that in the last decade or so, the manufacture and distribution worldwide of products bearing counterfeit certification marks to come off as legitimate products has risen dramatically, especially on e-commerce websites including Amazon and eBay. The items below are a few examples of products bearing counterfeit certification marks.

Next time you find a bargain-basement product, OTC drug or medical device bearing a certification mark, think twice and check out the certification mark carefully before using. Your life could depend on it.