🚨 Counterfeit Products

Today Korean Social News for Beginners | 2025.07.31

0️⃣ Stronger Online Platform Rules and Brand Protection Plans

📌 Online Platforms Now Have Legal Duty to Stop Fake Products

💬 Korea's Patent Office announced new rules that make online platforms responsible for stopping fake product sales. When brand owners report fake products, platforms must immediately stop the sales. If they don't act, they will face fines or public warnings. Foreign platforms must also choose local representatives in Korea to follow the same rules. The government will also use AI monitoring, customs blocking, and website blocking to prevent fake products before they reach customers. This is a strong response to the growing problem of fake products online and marks an important change in protecting consumers and real brands.

💡 Summary

• Counterfeit products are fake items made without permission from brand owners.
• Online platforms must immediately stop sales when fake products are reported.
• AI technology and customs blocking will help prevent fake products earlier.

1️⃣ Definition

Counterfeit products are fake items made without permission from brand owners, copying their trademarks or designs. These products look similar to real products but are made and sold illegally without proper licenses, which breaks intellectual property laws.

These fake products trick consumers into thinking they are real, or are sold at lower prices than genuine products, which hurts brand value and disrupts fair market competition.

💡 Why is this important?

• It protects consumer safety and rights.
• It guarantees brand intellectual property rights and investment value.
• It is essential for maintaining fair market competition.
• It has important effects on national economy and industry development.

2️⃣ Current Situation and Problems with Counterfeit Products

📕 Big Increase in Fake Products Through Online Platforms

• Fake product sales have grown a lot in the digital age. Main trends include:

  • Sales of fake products through online shopping malls and social commerce are rapidly increasing.
  • Importing fake products through overseas direct purchase platforms is also steadily growing.
  • Cases of fake products being sold as genuine on person-to-person trading platforms happen frequently.
  • Sales of fake products through social media and live commerce are also becoming new problems.
  • Stopping fake products online is harder than in traditional offline stores.

• Damage from fake products appears in various ways. Main damages include:

  • Consumers pay genuine product prices but receive lower quality fake products.
  • Safety problems with fake products create health risks for consumers.
  • Real brands suffer direct damage to their reputation and sales.
  • Tax losses occur because fake product sellers don't pay proper taxes.
  • Real manufacturers lose motivation to invest in research and development.

📕 Limits of Current Control Systems

• Problems with the effectiveness of current laws have been pointed out. Main limits include:

  • Online platforms only acted as simple middlemen and didn't take direct responsibility for fake product sales.
  • For foreign platforms, applying domestic laws was difficult, creating regulatory blind spots.
  • Post-incident control approaches were hard to respond to rapidly changing online environments.
  • It took too long from reporting fake products to actual action, reducing effectiveness.

• Difficulties in control and punishment helped fake products spread. Main problems include:

  • Fake product sellers could easily create new accounts to restart sales.
  • Tracking fake product distribution networks across borders was complex and difficult.
  • Punishment levels were low compared to profits from selling fake products, so deterrent effects were insufficient.
  • Consumers' lack of ability to distinguish fake products meant demand continued.
  • Fake product manufacturing technology became more sophisticated, making it harder to distinguish with the naked eye.

💡 Main Problems in Fake Product Distribution

1. Platform Responsibility Avoidance: No responsibility for fake product distribution as simple middlemen
2. Cross-border Control Limits: Difficulty regulating foreign platforms and international distribution networks
3. Lack of Quick Response: Effectiveness decreased due to time delays from reporting to action
4. Insufficient Punishment Levels: Low deterrent effects due to low punishment compared to fake product sales profits
5. Lack of Consumer Awareness: Insufficient consumer understanding of fake product dangers

3️⃣ Government's Comprehensive Plans and Expected Effects

✅ Plans to Strengthen Online Platform Responsibility

• Platforms' legal duties will be greatly strengthened. Main changes include:

  • When brand owners report fake products, platforms must immediately stop sales of those products.
  • If they don't take action within a certain time after receiving reports, they become subject to fines.
  • Platforms that repeatedly fail to fulfill their duties will receive sanctions like public announcements.
  • Account suspension or permanent expulsion of fake product sellers will also be mandatory.
  • Platforms must build their own monitoring systems to prevent fake products.

• Regulations on foreign platforms will also be strengthened. Main contents include:

  • Foreign platforms must designate local representatives when providing services in Korea.
  • Through local representatives, they have the duty to follow Korea's trademark laws and related regulations.
  • They must have systems to receive and process reports in Korean.
  • They will receive the same level of legal responsibility and sanctions as domestic platforms.
  • For platforms that refuse to designate representatives, measures like access blocking will be possible.

✅ Using AI Technology and Building Prevention Systems

• AI-based fake product detection systems will be introduced. Main technologies include:

  • AI will analyze product images and descriptions to automatically determine the possibility of fake products.
  • Systems will be built to compare with existing fake product databases and check similarities.
  • Early warning systems will operate for suspicious sellers or products.
  • Learning brand-specific features will make more accurate fake product identification possible.
  • Real-time monitoring will enable early blocking of fake product distribution.

• Prevention systems at customs stages will also be strengthened. Main measures include:

  • Customs will expand detailed inspections of suspected fake products.
  • Genuine product certification systems will be built in cooperation with brand companies.
  • Intensive management will be implemented for companies that repeatedly import fake products.
  • Prevention at manufacturing countries will also be promoted through international cooperation.
  • Systems will be prepared for consumers to directly report suspected fake products.

4️⃣ Related Term Explanations

🔎 Trademark Law

• Trademark law is legislation that protects trademark rights and maintains fair trading order.
  • Trademark law is legislation enacted to protect trademark owners' interests and consumers' interests, and contribute to industrial development by regulating trademark registration and protection. It prohibits unauthorized use of others' registered trademarks.
  • Main contents of trademark law include: First, it specifies trademark registration requirements and procedures. Second, it regulates trademark rights' effectiveness, duration, and renewal methods. Third, it has civil remedy and criminal punishment clauses for trademark infringement. Fourth, selling fake products corresponds to trademark infringement defined in this law and is subject to damage compensation and criminal punishment.
  • Recent amendments added clauses strengthening online platform responsibility. If platforms receive fake product reports but don't take appropriate action, they will receive sanctions like fines or public announcements. This is part of strengthening legal responses to changes in the digital age.

🔎 Intellectual Property Rights

• Intellectual property rights are rights to intangible assets created through human creative activities.
  • Intellectual property rights refer to legal rights to intangible property created and valued through human intellectual creative activities or experience. Patent rights, trademark rights, copyrights, and design rights are representative examples, and are recognized as very important assets in the modern economy.
  • Characteristics of intellectual property rights include: First, they are rights legally protected although they are intangible property. Second, as exclusive rights, they can prohibit unauthorized use by others. Third, they have certain duration periods and renewal may be possible in some cases. Fourth, economic value can be realized through transfer or licensing.
  • Counterfeit products are representative illegal acts that violate these intellectual property rights. They especially illegally steal trademark rights and design rights to deceive consumers and violate legitimate rights holders' interests. Therefore, protecting intellectual property rights is essential for encouraging creative activities and maintaining fair competition.

🔎 Unfair Competition Prevention Act

• The Unfair Competition Prevention Act is legislation that prohibits unfair competitive practices and protects sound trading order.
  • The Unfair Competition Prevention Act is legislation enacted to prevent unfair competition acts and trade secret infringement acts, maintain sound trading order, and promote industrial development. It defines acts of copying product or business marks to cause consumer confusion as representative unfair competition acts.
  • Subjects of the Unfair Competition Prevention Act include: First, acts of using marks identical or similar to others' product marks. Second, acts of transferring products that copy others' product forms are also included. Third, acts of illegally acquiring or using trade secrets are also regulated. Fourth, acts of illegally acquiring or using domain names are also prohibited.
  • Counterfeit products correspond to unfair competition acts because they make appearance and names similar to genuine products to cause consumer confusion. Through this law, damage compensation can be claimed from counterfeit product manufacturers and sellers, sales prohibition orders can be received, and criminal punishment is also possible. Along with trademark law, it becomes an important legal basis for regulating counterfeit products.

5️⃣ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: What should I do if I bought a counterfeit product online?

A: If you bought a counterfeit product, you should immediately demand a refund from the seller and platform and report to relevant agencies.

• If you bought a counterfeit product, first, immediately stop using it and demand a refund from the seller. Counterfeit products may be harmful to health because their safety is not verified. Second, report the counterfeit product to the platform customer center and request refund measures. Most platforms operate buyer protection policies for counterfeit products. Third, collect related evidence (order details, product photos, conversation contents, etc.). Fourth, you can report to the Patent Office's Intellectual Property Protection Center or Consumer Dispute Mediation Committee.
• Fifth, if you paid by credit card, you can request payment cancellation through objection to the card company. Sixth, if the damage amount is large or health damage occurred, you can apply for collective dispute mediation with help from the Consumer Protection Agency or Consumer Dispute Mediation Committee. In the future, it's important to carefully check seller reliability, product reviews, and price reasonableness before purchasing.

Q: Are there ways to distinguish counterfeit products from genuine ones?

A: You can distinguish counterfeit products to some extent by comprehensively reviewing price, seller, quality, packaging, etc.

• Methods to distinguish counterfeit products include: First, be careful of abnormally low prices. Luxury goods or popular products sold at 50% or less of genuine market prices are likely to be counterfeits. Second, check the seller's reliability. Luxury goods sold at places other than official dealers or official online malls should be suspected. Third, look carefully at product quality and finishing. If materials are crude or finishing is rough compared to genuine products, they may be counterfeits. Fourth, check packaging materials and accessories. Genuine products have packaging materials, certificates, and warranties that are elaborately made.
• Fifth, check the accuracy of brand logos or fonts. Counterfeits often have slightly different logos or typos. Sixth, use genuine product authentication services if possible. Many luxury brands provide genuine product authentication services through QR codes or serial numbers. However, since counterfeiting technology is becoming more sophisticated, if you're suspicious, it's safest to get expert appraisal or buy from official stores.