How to tell legitimate products from counterfeit online

A report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) shows that China produces a staggering 80% of the world's counterfeits. Despite this knowledge, and leaders of affected countries like America, Italy, France, Switzerland condemning China, the counterfeit trade continues to grow.

It is estimated to cost 2.5 million jobs in the world annually, but the question is..

How are these counterfeit manufacturers still thriving?

Economists site the psychology of sales as the force behind consumer compliance with these 'fake' clothes and shoes. Consumers blindly or intentionally ignore warning signs of counterfeit brand fashion for a chance to own a particular brand at a cheap price.

So the legitimate manufacturers and vendors are ignored because of all the costs involved in purchasing an 'original'.

In addition, some of these global brands like Nike and Adidas have production houses in China.

Fake Jordans Logo Pulse

How to differentiate real from fake

China is said to be an expert in 'real fakes' which are harder to tell from real makes. Plus, it is not the only player in the game. Other countries producing counterfeits include Hong Kong, Turkey, Singapore, Thailand, India, Morocco, UAE, Pakistan and Egypt, albeit their counterfeits are allegedly easier to spot.

Often consumers are trying to keep up with their lifestyle or style, there are huge red flags that could be embarrassing.

Spelling errors

According to the British Toy and Hobby Association, counterfeits are unlikely to come from the European Union states. For this reason, and rightfully so for some notorious spellings, spelling errors are frequent in product descriptions and even brand names.

Third-party sites

Scammers often use product pictures and legitimate sites to get clicks all over social media and the internet. So remember that even though a link directs you to a legitimate website, it doesn't follow that you will get an authentic product.

If you are redirected to an online market place, look out for spelling errors in URLs and also reviews and contact information.

The URL also shows if the site is secure or if you are vulnerable to hacking. 'HTTPS' shows that it is secure while 'HTTP' shows that your internet information is compromised.

Jordans Pulse

Compare to manufacturer's website

If you are still not convinced by spelling and URL and reviews, compare your purchase against the products on the manufacturer's official site.

Signs of counterfeit include:

Being unable to find identical products
Different design
Different materials and dimensions in product description
Significant decrease in price

Jordans Pulse

Report to concerned parties

Since counterfeit sellers are usually scammers, your best bet is contacting the company you paid with, Paypal or your card provider, and asking for a refund or chargeback.