DEFINITION

 A counterfeit product is an imitation which infringes upon a right held by usually a company. Goods are produced with the intent to bypass these rights  thus take advantage of the established worth of the previous product. The word counterfeit frequently describes both the forgeries (of currency and documents), as well as the imitations of clothing, software, pharmaceuticals, watches, etc. For examples, street vendors that sell "Chanel" handbags for a fraction of its price sell counterfeit products.

IMPACT ON e-BUSINESS

Counterfeiting can have a dramatic  damaging effect on business and has the potential to become even more problematical due to the recent economic downturn and the growing range of fake products being sold. If you run a selling/buying platform, and users sell counterfeited products, you can be held liable.

PRACTICAL LINKS

RELATED ISSUES

Cybercrime

Piracy