Brand Jacking - A Whole New Way To Scam

What is brand jacking?

Most of you have never heard of it - brandjacking. Despite likely being a victim to it at least once in your life time, brand jacking is sweeping this nation and hitting a number of other markets worldwide. So what is brandjacking anyway? Basically, products coming from countries like China, are more often than not completely fake, while appearing to be from known brands we might see on store shelves here in US.

Some of the most common cases appear in various bargin bin type store fronts like “buy it for a dollar” type outlets. While most of them try to keep things on the up and up, counterfeit products like toothpaste among other toiletries are making it to store shelves. And in some cases, these products are dangerous to use.

Toys are part of the problem as well.

It’s not just a matter of fake purses or cloned toothpaste, even children’s toys using unauthorized labels like Disney or Fisher Price are being faked. And on the off chance that the toys are not a spoof, in many cases, malicious types will simply opt to sell known to be recalled toys from e-commerce websites instead.

Double check those prescriptions.

Despite the best efforts by US pharmacists to educate the dangers of buying drugs off the Internet, it is still a booming business. And despite China providing some rather stiff penalties for violations on their shores, it is an issue that is not just localized to China. India, among other regions are seeing a rise in this issue despite cooperating with authorities to curb growing distribution.

How can you stay informed on the latest?

If you are a concerned retailer or even just a consumer wanting to look out for their family, this is something you need to stay on top of. In addition to a number of resources throughout the Internet, the MarkMonitor Brandjacking Index is something I would recommend looking into if you are serious about protecting your brand. For consumers, use Google News along with this site, to stay on top of the latest threats and recalls.

[tags]brand protection, recalled toys[/tags]