How does counterfeiting get to our home? The astonishing path of counterfeiting in Belgium
Today, some influencers can sell us counterfeit goods worth up to thousands of euros. But where do these products come from, how do they then get to Belgium and by whom are they controlled? In order to better understand the extent of the phenomenon, Raphaël, a journalist for the Internet show, went to meet customs agents at Liège airport.
To find counterfeit of poor quality, just go to sites like Amazon, Aliexpress or wish. On the other hand, for luxury counterfeiting, made by real professionals, it is in particular on the Reddit forum that it happens: entire sections dedicated to counterfeiting. And sites like this, there would be more than sixty thousand in the world.
Once purchased, the counterfeit products are mostly manufactured in China. More than 70% of all counterfeits stopped by customs come from there. For the journey, it is simple: the vast majority pass by sea and blend into the millions of containers that pass through the port of Antwerp. Another part also arrives by air, where control is often unannounced. This is the case at Liège airport, where, in all, almost 200 of them work at customs.
To better understand the extent of the phenomenon, Raphael went to meet these customs agents. In one of the many hangars at the airport, out of thousands of stacked boxes, customs officers select only a handful of them, often according to their provenance.
Every year, customs officers arrest several hundred thousand items. Mostly children's toys, but also luxury bags, sneakers, medicines and even fake botox. Even more unthinkable, a customs officer explains to Raphael that they have already found vaccines for cats, sold as Covid vaccine …
In any case, be aware that, in principle, a counterfeit buyer risks a fine of up to €80,000 and five years' imprisonment. Even if, in practice, it remains in the order of several hundred euros per article, to pay the costs of the file and the cost of destruction. Not so cheap after all.
Find the video sequence below and the replay of the show here! The Internet show is every Thursday at 8: 00 p.m. on Tipik and Auvio.
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