Illicit goods cost manufacturers billions each year and distort global trade, putting entire companies at risk. To stay ahead, every business owner needs a clear strategy to block knockoffs before they reach customers and erode hard-earned trust.
Counterfeiting isn’t just a hypothetical threat. A case in Latvia in late 2023 revealed a warehouse filled with 22 metric tons of fake Ariel laundry detergent, complete with forged packaging, forged labels, and falsified shipping documents —the work of a criminal network, and a blow of over €700,000 in damages to Procter & Gamble.
As a brand owner, this kind of discovery represents more than lost revenue.
Think back to all the struggles you went through to build up your reputation. Now, imagine a customer unknowingly buying a knockoff, only to find it doesn’t work as intended. They instantly lose trust in your reputation, trust hard to win back.
This article gives you a practical roadmap to disrupt illicit goods, from securing your IP to deploying the right mix of protective features. Along the way, we’ll highlight how AlpVision solutions can support you, with a white paper available for deeper comparison.
Protect your IP first
Protecting your intellectual property (IP) is the foundation of any security strategy. If you don’t register your trademarks and designs, you’ll struggle to convince marketplaces, customs, or courts to act against counterfeiters. A simple filing in your priority markets gives you the legal standing under the law you need for takedowns and deal with violations.
Start with the essentials: register your trademarks in the regions that matter most, keep an eye on online platforms for suspicious listings, and be ready to act quickly with takedown requests (CM/DMCA). These steps are simple, relatively low-cost, and form the foundation of effective business defense.
Strong IP also makes advanced security more powerful. When you authenticate a suspicious item, with tools like Cryptoglyph® or Fingerprint®, that evidence connects directly to your trademarks. This makes takedowns and even court cases far more effective.
Quick checklist:
- Register trademarks in key jurisdictions
- Monitor and log evidence consistently
- Define priority regions for action
- Collaborate with lawyers to act on takedowns
With these foundations in place, you can then focus on building the right safeguards to keep counterfeiters out of your supply chain.
Choose multiple layers of product security
The most resilient companies rely on defense-in-depth. This means combining several safeguards into a complete package, rather than betting on a single feature.
A visible hologram might reassure shoppers, but paired with tamper-evident seals, covert markers, and serialization, it becomes part of a system that is far harder for frauds to show up. Each layer reinforces the others, closing gaps and raising the cost of imitation.
Here’s how different measures typically compare:
| Security feature | Difficulty to copy | Cost range |
| Visible elements (holograms, inks) | Low to medium | Low to medium |
| Tamper-evident packaging | Medium | Low to medium |
| Serialization / track-and-trace | Medium | Medium |
| Covert / forensic marks | High | Low to medium |
| Digital links (QR, NFC, blockchain) | Medium | Medium to high |
AlpVision solutions fit directly into this layered approach:
- Cryptoglyph® — a covert marking, invisible to the naked eye, integrated into existing packaging or labels. It enables authentication without changing your manufacturing process.
- Fingerprint® — leverages the natural micro-structure of the article’s surface, creating a unique “fingerprint” for instant verification.
- Brand Monitoring System (BMS) — turns authentication data into actionable intelligence. It collects evidence from the field and generates statistics that can be used for enforcement or management decisions.
Together, these solutions safeguard items beyond packaging and into detection and analytics, giving you both the tools to identify imitations and the data to act on them.
Real-world actions you can take
Security features only matter if they’re put into practice. You need processes that connect packaging supervision to day-to-day operations — from store checks to crackdowns or raids.
1. On-pack authentication → front-line checks
Train your sales, distributor, and retail partners to run quick authentication checks, whether with a mobile app or scanning system. Combine visible features for end-users with covert markers for investigators. That way both audiences can verify the stock at their level.
Practical steps:
- Train staff to use quick authentication tools
- Provide end-users with simple “first-glance” checks
- Reserve covert features for investigators
2. Market monitoring & data-driven enforcement
Authentication doesn’t end with packaging. Using systems like AlpVision’s BMS, you can spot suspicious spikes in illicit activity by geography, seller IDs, or item SKUs — a clear sign of illicit trade. Pair this data with evidence collection (sample images, timestamps, geolocation) to build cases that authorities can act on.
Key activities:
- Track suspicious activity with BMS dashboards
- Collect evidence: images, timestamps, seller info
- Use data to trigger takedowns or raids
3. Supply chain controls
A secure supply chain is just as important as secure packaging. Serialization, trusted distribution partners, tamper seals, and track-and-trace integration help ensure only authentic goods move downstream. Regular audits further reduce risk.
What to do:
- Use serialization or track-and-trace tools
- Partner with vetted distributors
- Apply tamper-evident seals
- Run regular audits
4. Legal/enforcement playbook
Have a plan ready for when knockoffs appear or when black market operations target your assets.
This includes sending cease-and-desist letters, filing takedowns on major platforms such as Amazon or eBay, scheduling field sweeps, and working with local authorities.
In the U.S., that often means coordinating with Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which runs dedicated programs to intercept fraudulent items at points of entry.
Evidence from Cryptoglyph® or Fingerprint® technologies strengthens these actions in law proceedings.
Documented authentication evidence also helps enforce your IP rights in court, support infringement cases, or assist border officials.
Quick steps:
- Prepare cease-and-desist templates
- Use marketplace takedown tools (DMCA)
- Schedule targeted market sweeps
- Share evidence with local authorities
5. Customer & partner communications
Don’t forget to bring customers and partners into the fight. Teach buyers how to verify authenticity without revealing covert methods and keep distribution partners informed about your fraud prevention program. Visible responses help boost confidence in your company.
Next moves:
- Provide user-friendly authentication guidance
- Educate partners on protective features
- Publicize your efforts responsibly
How technology choices impact actionability
Not every feature delivers the same value in practice. Some are easy for consumers to use, others generate evidence strong enough for litigations, and others are designed to secure supply chains at scale. The right choice depends on how you plan to act on the information.
When evaluating solutions, consider criteria like:
- Detectability — can a consumer or investigator reliably spot the feature?
- Ease of authentication — does it work with a smartphone, or require special tools?
- Cost per item — how much does it add to unit cost?
- Scalability — can it cover millions of units without slowing production?
- Forensic strength — could the evidence hold up in court?
- Integration — how easily does it fit into your existing supply chain?
Here’s how common measures compare at a high level:
| Technology | Best use case | Ease of authentication | Cost impact | Forensic strength |
| Holograms / inks | Quick consumer check | High (visible) | Low | Low (easy to copy) |
| RFID / NFC | Supply chain traceability | Medium (scanner/phone) | Medium-high | Medium |
| QR / blockchain | Consumer engagement + supply chain linking | High (smartphone) | Medium | Medium |
| Serialization | Regulatory / distribution control | Medium | Medium | Medium |
| Cryptoglyph® | Packaging-level authentication | High (smartphone app) | Low | High |
| Fingerprint® | Item-level authentication | High (smartphone app) | Low-medium | Very high |
No single tool covers every angle. A hologram may reassure buyers, but it won’t hold up in court. RFID is powerful for logistics, but costly for low-margin goods. Covert tools like Cryptoglyph® and Fingerprint® excel in investigator proof, while still being cost-effective for mass deployment.
What matters is that you match your tech mix to your strategy. For a side-by-side technical comparison and ROI analysis, download AlpVision’s white paper on selecting anti-counterfeiting measures.
Measuring success & KPIs
Protection programs only prove their value when you can measure results. That means setting clear KPIs that track both activity in the field and how it effects your organization.
Useful metrics include:
- Number of authenticated items — volume of stock checked
- Suspicious authentication events — flagged items that suggest forgery
- Geographic clusters — hotspots of illicit distribution
- Takedowns and closures — online listings or sellers removed
- Seizure counts — physical goods intercepted by customs or investigators
- Estimated recovered revenue — financial consequences of field actions
- Engagement conversions — downloads of your white paper or user interactions with authentication apps
AlpVision’s Brand Monitoring System (BMS) makes these KPIs actionable. Each authentication event — whether customer, partner, or investigator — is logged with time, location, and pack details. Dashboards then highlight patterns, helping stakeholders detect spikes in knockoffs and prioritize action where it matters most.
Thus, you can not only show progress to management, but also justify continued investment in counterfeit prevention by pointing to hard numbers.
Conclusion: Take the next step
Counterfeits are here to stay — in fact, they have existed since the dawn of times. The world’s oldest customer complaint, carved on a Mesopotamian clay tablet nearly 4,000 years ago, was about a merchant delivering fake copper ingots instead of the real thing. Some things never change.
What can change is how you protect your reputation. From IP law and trademark protection to advanced tools like Cryptoglyph®, Fingerprint®, RFID, holograms, and blockchain, the choices you make today will shape your resilience tomorrow.
Download our white paper on selecting anti-counterfeiting solutions for a side-by-side comparison of the leading options and learn how to build the most effective defense strategy for your organization.
Download Your Whitepaper