Cute, Cheap & Counterfeit: The Danger of Fake Goods

If you’re in the Gen Z age bracket, or know someone who is, the chances are that you’ve heard of Lababu dolls. These ‘ugly’ collectible dolls, the product of Chinese business Pop Mart, are changing hands for as much as $150,000 after being popularised on TikTok and spotted in the hands of pop stars Rihanna, Dua Lipa and K-Pop artist Lisa of BLACKPINK. Through a clever combination of brand collaborations and celebrity endorsements, Pop Mart has seen its corporate value eclipse that of fellow toymakers Hasbro and Mattel in 2025.

When a product becomes successful, you can guarantee that opportunists are not far behind. Trading Standards officers in Scotland recently warned of an influx of fake Labubu dolls, after hundreds were seized in Aberdeen and Ayrshire. The dolls were described as “poorly made” and had not passed UK safety regulations and contain small parts that present a choking risk to children.

Poor quality, potentially dangerous products are a defining feature of global counterfeit trade which, according to calculations by IP protection specialists Corsearch, accounted for 3.3% of worldwide trade in 2023 and could reach $1.79tn by 2030. For context, this puts the counterfeit economy easily in the top ten economies globally. Furthermore, because counterfeiting is illegal, the funds realised finance criminal activities.

Counterfeit risks for brand owners

Almost any product that can be manufactured can be counterfeited, despite robust attempts by brand owners to protect their intellectual property and trade secrets. Reverse engineering products has become easier thanks to technology advances, and without the restrictions imposed by manufacturing safety and labour regulations, counterfeiters can produce and sell convincing fakes at low cost. Counterfeits always bear the trade mark of the original product in a bid to dupe consumers. In this, they differ from “knock-off” products, which may look very similar, but do not carry the mark and can therefore be more easily identified by consumers.    

Unwitting consumers buying counterfeit products will likely be disappointed in the quality of the goods. When this happens, the brand loses a genuine customer, resulting in direct financial loss, and its reputation is tarnished, reducing the likelihood of further sales to that customer and creating a ripple effect of brand erosion. 

In the worst cases, serious harm can result.

Recently, the UK IPO brought together stakeholders from across the animal welfare spectrum to raise awareness of counterfeit flea and worm treatments being marketed online to UK consumers under the trade mark “FRONTLINE®”, after several pets became seriously unwell when being treated.

Product testing by the University of Bath showed that they contained an insecticide chemical that vets from the Veterinary Medicines Directorate confirmed is highly toxic to cats and can lead to severe illness and death.

The IPO also worked with the trade mark owner, Boehringer Ingelheim, to identify flaws and inaccuracies in the packaging of the counterfeit product. In particular, the language on the packaging was Italian, not English, and contained several spelling errors, which the IPO underlines as being “common indicators of counterfeit products.”

The campaign, which ran in June 2025, gained huge media coverage across national, regional and local news outlets including TV, print and radio, animal-focused consumer magazines and specialist trade and veterinary publications.

Buyer beware: how to spot fakes   

With everything from make-up and medicines to car parts and confectionery regularly at risk of counterfeiting, buyers should be alert to other signs that might indicate that a product is not all it claims to be.

Suspiciously low pricing, the aforementioned spelling errors, and poor-quality packaging are telltale signs. Buying from reputable outlets is advisable, so you have recourse if you discover a purchased item is counterfeit.

Where Labubu dolls are concerned, Pop Mart advises that fake products often have the wrong number of teeth – genuine dolls have nine.

As with the Labubu example, buyers should be especially alert when purchasing the latest trending product, because these are frequently targeted by counterfeiters. Newly popular weight loss medicines, for example, are also popping up in very dangerous counterfeits, with this fake batch of Ozempic identified in the US being related to six adverse health incidents among users.

What brands can do to combat counterfeits

Defending the brand against counterfeiting is an important role undertaken by trade mark attorneys, brand protection teams and in-house legal departments. It can involve a wide variety of activities from working closely with authorities to identify and seize shipments of fake products, to devising new and discreet ways to mark products to enable them to be identified as genuine.

A robust anti-counterfeit programme involves multiple layers and should be supported by sufficient budget to enable it to be effective. The following are some of the activities involved.

• Registering IP rights: Brands must ensure that the relevant IP rights are registered and rigorously maintained in all the territories in which the product is marketed or manufactured. This forms the legal basis on which the business can challenge counterfeiters.
• Monitoring: This is an important part of the process, particularly when it comes to online marketplaces, which can be a hotbed of fake products. There are various third-party organisations that offer monitoring services to lift the burden from in-house teams.
• Communication: It is important to inform customs authorities of the details of your trade marks and set up lines of communication with enforcement teams. It is also essential to engage with the brand protection programmes offered by the different marketplaces to ensure fake products are removed from them as efficiently as possible.
• Creative protection: By adding “secret” authentication details to your products you can make it harder for counterfeiters to copy them and help authorities to more easily identify fakes.
• Raising awareness: As with the FRONTLINE example, engaging with other stakeholders to raise awareness of counterfeiting, its dangers, and how to spot fake versions of your products through education programmes with employees, consumers, and law enforcement personnel is valuable. You can make life harder for counterfeiters and help to reduce their market. If it is feasible, you may wish to publish a list of authorised sales outlets, so consumers can be confident they are buying genuine products from approved sellers.
• Monitoring your supply chain: Employ solutions that assist with the tracking and tracing of products through your supply and distribution chain, such as placing codes on products. Regularly audit your suppliers to ensure that they are physically protecting components and finished goods.
• Taking legal action: It is essential that brands use the power of the law to make cases against counterfeiters in the civil court, and that they publicise the outcome of successful cases to deter would-be counterfeiters.

Protecting the business against counterfeiting is an important aspect of a trade mark professional’s role. It doesn’t just benefit the brand, but also has a positive impact on consumers and society and, for that reason, can be one of the most satisfying parts of the job.