Counterfeit products have been flooding ecommerce platforms, Thanh Nien newspaper reported, citing a report by the General Department of Market Surveillance under the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Market management officials in HCMC destroy fake helmets. The ecommerce market is a potential playground for the sale of counterfeits

The phenomenon of selling fake goods remains complicated, with the rising presence of counterfeits and copycats in the market.

Many firms and individuals have accessed ecommerce platforms and set up Facebook pages or websites to market and sell their products, opening the door to the rampant emergence of counterfeit products.

The report indicated that the production and sale of counterfeit, imitation and poor-quality products have overwhelmed ecommerce platforms, affecting the health of residents and the security and safety of the society.

Instead of being transported by trucks as was the case earlier, counterfeit and low-quality products, mainly garments, functional food, medicine, cosmetics, smartphones, wine, beer, sweet drinks and electronics, are being transported by coaches and passenger autos to facilitate the distribution of these products to various places in Vietnam, including remote areas.

Methods of producing and trading fake products are being used subtly with an aim to tap the potential ecommerce market with its high growth rate, which was over 30% in 2018, according to the report.

Besides this, a series of websites, social media and financial organizations operated by foreigners are dominating the local online sale playground, but they have yet to be strictly controlled.

Nguyen Ngoc Ty, a representative of hat firm Non Son, said that several firms have made efforts to fight counterfeit and imitation products and protect their brands, but these have been in vain as too many of them are sold at multiple stores and on numerous websites.

Ty said the penalties for manufacturing and selling counterfeit goods are not harsh enough to stop the crime.

The Vietnam Ecommerce and Digital Economy Agency has recently said that Vietnam is working on preventive measures to control the sale of counterfeit products and to impose harsh sanctions on the violations taking place across ecommerce platforms.

The National Steering Committee 389 is in the process of partnering with competent authorities to beef up the fighting and prevention of using ecommerce platforms for illegal actions and smuggling.

SGT