World trade in counterfeit pharmaceuticals was estimated at 4.000 million euros and the pandemic has raised “concern” about counterfeiting in the health area, points out the European Union's Intellectual Property Institute (EUIPO).
“Concern about counterfeit products increased even more during the covid-19 pandemic. The proliferation of counterfeit drugs, including antibiotics and analgesics, and other medical products such as personal protective equipment and face masks, has highlighted this phenomenon, in which offenders take advantage of people's uncertainty about new treatments and vaccines." refers to a study by EUIPO.
According to the work, courier and express mail services are the main means of transporting counterfeit pharmaceutical products sold throughout the world.
The institute warns that "counterfeit products pose serious risks to the health and safety of citizens, as they generally do not meet quality and safety standards and may contain dangerous ingredients or components."
A qualitative analysis carried out by EUIPO showed that "the major risks are related to exposure to hazardous chemicals", and this concern has led the authorities to periodically coordinate large-scale cross-border inspection operations (called Silver Ax), which have already resulted in seizure of 1.222 tons of illicit and counterfeit pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers.
In addition to the health and safety risks, the European institute emphasizes that the purchase of counterfeit products and access to pirated digital content “frequently result in security breaches and financial losses for consumers who are active in internet stores , on platforms and in 'online' markets, but which can also be reached through social networks».
In a recent analysis of millions of public conversations on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Reddit, EUIPO concluded that “one third of conversations about digital content (35%) could possibly be related to piracy, being movie and movie piracy. songs the most covered areas, especially on Reddit and Twitter».
The survey identified "a notable increase in piracy-related conversations during the months of the onset of the pandemic in the spring of 2020" and further noted that "11% of conversations about physical products could also be related to counterfeits."
Comments