GS1 Discusses Protecting Goods with Amazon

EFSA sits on the GS1 Council for Southern Africa which is hosted by the Consumer Goods Council. GS1 is the system of QR codes and Bar codes which guarantee the origin and quality of products. Recently GS1 SA asked us to arrange a meeting with Amazon as it has received an increasing number of complaints from its members on the misuse of QR codes and/or counterfeiting of goods offered online. Most complaints are due to the hijacking of codes (the seller uses a QR or bar code from another product to mask its counterfeit), or to incorrect registering of a code. Amazon works with GS1 Global on this issue and therefore is well prepared to cooperate. The increase of ecommerce and the economic downturn have increased the sale of counterfeit goods worldwide. Some of these goods pose very serious health risks for consumers, and at best are of inferior quality. Both the EU and US governments are keen to reduce the flow of these goods. The GS1 system has a proven track record in this regard.

Meanwhile, Scamadvisor has undertaken a survey asking why consumers go for fake products over original ones. More than 1,100 consumers from across the world participated. The report contains interesting insights about factors driving consumers towards counterfeits and how to prevent them from buying fakes. Read the Report