Europol / EUIPO: New Threat Assessment Report

In June 2019, Europol and the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) published the first EU-wide intellectual property crime threat assessment, building upon two previous joint situation reports on piracy and counterfeiting. The report confirms links between IP crime and the increasingly professionalized organized crime networks in the EU.

Threat Assessment Report

The new Europol/EUIPO threat assessment, based on EU-wide data and strategic intelligence analysis, stresses that the market of counterfeit goods still is highly profitable with only a small risk of detection.

According to the report, China remains the main source of all types of counterfeit goods, but, domestic manufacturing within Europe appears to be increasing. The report also underlines that not only traditional luxury items such as bags, clothing and footwear, but also everyday goods such as mobile phone, food and drinks and pharmaceuticals are targeted. The report stresses that especially the trade of counterfeit medicines for the treatment of serious illness and medical equipment is on the rise and emphasized the negative impact on human health, safety and environment.

The report also shows that the use of small parcels, fake goods sent mostly by post or express services, keeps growing. It also makes it more difficult for enforcement authorities to detect them.

Moreover, the report states that online, illegal digital content resumes to be distributed through BitTorrent portals and peer-to-peer networks, but also via cyberlockers. The profit is generated through digital advertisement, which frequently contains mainstream adverts from major brands.

The emerging threats through counterfeiting and piracy to human and environment is increasing.

The full report can be found here. For more information on how to tackle counterfeiting and piracy, please contact us via email at: info@lexdellmeier.com