Does Counterfeit Toners Make Your Skin Burn ?

[Anonymous]

Fake battle gets real

Does Counterfeit Toners Make Your Skin Burn ?
Most people associate fake goods with poorly copied designer handbags or pirated DVDs.

But counterfeiters today are copying a host of other items as well, including toys, and the result can be more serious than a broken strap or skipping movie.

"If you think of children’s toys made with material that can be harmful to human beings, like lead or mercury or paint … It’s very dangerous," says Abdulla Hasayen, the chairman of the Brand Owners’ Protection Group (BOPG) and anti-counterfeiting manager for the Middle East and Africa region at Nokia.

Food and pharmaceuticals are other sectors in which counterfeiters are playing copycat with dangerous consequences. Fake drugs, for instance, do not contain many of the ingredients they claim to have and, in some cases, include dangerous elements.

"When it comes to pharmaceuticals it gets more serious because when the patient buys the product he assumes it is of a certain quality and it solves a certain problem," says Mr Hasayen.

Even seemingly innocuous counterfeit toner cartridges can be harmful, observers say.

"I have had the toner and ink on my hands and my skin starts to burn afterwards," says Tina Rose, an anti-counterfeit programme manager for aftermarket sales at HP. "With fake toners you usually get a big cloud of dust because they haven’t sealed them properly, so [who] knows what you’re breathing in."

And there is no doubt that counterfeit goods are harmful to the bottom line of companies, too, which is one of the reasons why they plough so much money into tackling the problem.HP works closely with the authorities in the Middle East, Africa and eastern Europe, where most fake toner and ink cartridges are sold. In the past four years it has helped local law enforcements in the region to seize almost 9 million counterfeit HP products from the market.

"We have a very good relationship in Dubai with police and the Ministry of Finance, and that’s why we’ve been able to seize so many products in Dubai, Ajman and Sharjah in the last few years," says Ms Rose.

"If you view counterfeit products as illegal competition that means we have helped our partners and retailers who sell our genuine products to operate in a much more fair environment by removing those counterfeit products from the market."

HP has also introduced features to its cartridges and toners to help shoppers determine if they are genuine. If a fake product is loaded into the printer, customers are automatically routed to the HP website, which shows them what to do.

But improved security labels on packaging will make it even easier for shoppers to determine if a product is genuine before they buy it. From February, the holographic security label on toner products will include a barcode that people who own smartphones can scan using a free app. Those who do not own a smartphone can visit a website and enter a code to check whether the product is legitimate.

Organisations such as the BOPG work with authorities to raise awareness about the issue. But companies admit it is a difficult problem to deal with. "Counterfeiting is a monster. You cut one hand and another one grows," says Ms Rose.

"No one will ever get rid of counterfeiting. It’s not possible, so what we have to do is be realistic about what we can do and we have to apply the resources."

http://www.itweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=48653:hp-raids-pretoria-fraudsters&catid=118
HP raids Pretoria fraudsters
Computing company HP has made a local seizure of counterfeit printing supplies destined for HP printers.

The company says it assisted South African law enforcement officials, who confiscated about 3 200 fake laser print cartridges, in a highly co-ordinated strike in Pretoria.

“The police action saw authorities raid the offices and warehouses of three companies. In addition to the illegal items, police confiscated documents and other valuable intelligence that will lead to additional anti-counterfeit actions.”

The hit to the counterfeiting network, which had imported fake goods from China via Port of Durban, is expected to reduce the level of counterfeit products being distributed in the region, according to HP.

“People who buy counterfeit print cartridges and other fake merchandise believe mistakenly that they’re receiving original products, and they deserve the… performance for which they’re paying,” says GM for HP IPG in SA Fabrice Campoy.

Police lead

The company adds that over the last four years, it has assisted in the seizure of nearly nine million pieces of fake printing supplies, products and components in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Globally, it has conducted about 5 000 investigations in almost 90 countries over the last four years, resulting in the seizure of more than 30 million units of counterfeit cartridges and components.

Any enforcement action is led by either police (criminal) or an administrative organisation.

“Through its Anti-Counterfeiting Programme, HP actively educates its customers and partners to be vigilant against fake printing supplies. It also co-operates closely with local and global law enforcement to detect and dismantle illegal operations that produce counterfeit HP printing components.”

http://www.journal.com.ph/index.php/news/metro/16220-nbi-seizes-p18m-worth-of-fake-hp-inks-and-toners
NBI seizes P18M worth of fake HP inks and toners

THE South East Asia Anti-Counterfeit (SEA ACF) Team and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) have seized several counterfeit HP products amounting to P18,417,924 in a recent raid conducted in several parts of Metro Manila. This is the biggest amount of counterfeit HP products to be recovered by local operatives in a single raid during the past several years. Aside from the confiscated products, 12 persons have been arrested for allegedly manufacturing and distributing the illegal counterfeit products to retail outlets and end users in the National Capital Region.

Among the counterfeit HP products that were recovered were 16,656 finished inks, 183 finished toners, 613 unfinished toners, 3,237 unfinished ink cartridges, 22 toner flat packages as well as ink filling machines and other counterfeiting equipment and components.

The latest crackdown adds to the string of raids conducted in the country. In 2006, authorities have confiscated P9,606,198 worth of counterfeit HP products and around P4,724,538 worth of products in 2009. As of today, the total amount of seized HP inks and toners in the Philippines has reached P32,738,660.

To further intensify the campaign against counterfeit HP products, the world’s largest technology company has partnered with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to launch the NO to Fakes. KNOW the Original campaign that seeks to raise public awareness on the proliferation of counterfeit goods like HP inks and toner as well as the Philippine peso bills.

“HP is committed to provide the best, high quality products to our consumers. We do not want them to be deceived by unscrupulous traders who sell fake inks and toners branded as HP,” said Armando Pascual, country general manager, Imaging and Printing Group, HP Philippines. “We will continue to actively educate our consumers on how to spot fakes from the originals to empower them as anti-counterfeit citizen advocates.”

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November 1, 2011 at 9:28 AM