The ISC reported that counterfeiting across all product categories has grown to over a $700 billion industry this year. Supplies counterfeiting in the worldwide imaging supplies market is estimated at $3.5 billion annually.
This year’s event focused on the “Prevention of Counterfeiting and Fraud in the Imaging Supplies Industry” and took place from 19 to 21 September.
Ralph Basham, former Commissioner of the US Customs and Border Protection Agency, delivered the conference keynote speech. The ISC said that Basham discussed “the difficulty of maintaining the balance between security and movement of goods and people”. However, he emphasized that security needs must come first.
15 speakers discussed the theme of the conference, Combating Counterfeiting on a global scale. And 90 brand protection professionals from around the world attended the conference.
According to the organizer, several speakers described counterfeiting as “a relatively low risk/high reward venture for the counterfeiter, but with significant negative ramifications for manufacturers, the channel and consumers”.
The ISC said that the presentations ranged from a discussion on anti-counterfeiting technology to a global view of the supplies counterfeiting environment.
ISC President Allen Westerfield said: “Presentations of case studies from Mexico, South East Asia and Europe described a counterfeiting industry which is global in nature.
“Presentations also reviewed the strategies and tactics implemented by brand owners to protect their stakeholders from counterfeiters. Other anti-counterfeiting organizations including the IACC, the CACP and ICCE presented their plans and actions to mitigate counterfeiting.”