Apple's Anti-Counterfeit Team Has Targeted Over 1 Million Listings on Instagram and Other Marketplaces in the Past Year

[MacRumors]

Apple has a dedicated team of experts that focus solely on ferreting out counterfeit products and stopping them from being sold. Apple shared the tidbit in a statement to Bloomberg on a piece about counterfeit iPhone chargers.

The safety of our customers is our first priority, and the risks associated with counterfeit products can be very serious. We have a dedicated team of experts constantly working with law enforcement, merchants, social media companies and e-commerce sites around the world to remove counterfeit products from the market. In the last year we have sought the removal of over 1 million listings for counterfeit and fake Apple products from online marketplaces, including Facebook and Instagram.

Apple in the last year had more than a million listings for fake Apple products removed from various online marketplaces like Facebook and Instagram.

Bloomberg's piece delves into fake chargers that have sometimes caused harm to users, with many of those chargers investigated sold on Instagram, Facebook, and other social media sites.

Chinese factories and illicit vendors sell knockoff Apple accessories at cheap prices, and those products are difficult to tell apart from real products. They're outwardly identical to the real thing in every way, but don't have the same safety standards.

• How to Make Sure Your Apple MagSafe Charger is Genuine

Andrea Stroppa, a security researcher who accidentally used a counterfeit product borrowed from a friend, launched an investigation with his colleagues from Ghost Data Team. Their study from February 8 to March 8 uncovered 163 wholesale sellers of counterfeit Apple products on Instagram, ranging from fake $25 AirPods Pro to a fake $5 MagSafe Charger.

When purchasing an Apple accessory, it's important to make sure you buy from a reputable retailer or from Apple's own site to avoid fakes, and accessories should never be purchased on sites like Instagram.

Article Link: Apple's Anti-Counterfeit Team Has Targeted Over 1 Million Listings on Instagram and Other Marketplaces in the Past Year

 

[Apple_Robert]

Thank you for looking out for us, Apple.

 

[gnasher729]

I remember an article about Apple buying 100 “genuine” apple iPhone chargers - actual number of genuine ones was zero, with 80 declared “unsafe”.

 

[1258186]

I wouldn’t buy anything from Facebook or Instagram. Too many scams on there.

 

[44267547]

I’d also like to point out Amazon has done a good job weeding out counterfeit Apple products/chargers/accessories that was a problem, but being the popularity that follows with Apple, obviously there’s loads of Chinese counterfeits. It Really is a collaborative effort to protect the consumer the best they can.

 

[ouimetnick]

One thing I never cheap out on is chargers and charging cables. I use only genuine Apple chargers from the Apple Store or Best Buy. I’m sure there are other safe and well engineered options as well like Anker for example. I always tell people to stay away from a $30 MagSafe charger for your Mac or a $10 iPhone charger.

A genuine Apple USB-C charger is only $19 anyway.

 

[sw1tcher]

Thank you for looking out for us, Apple.

Apple's looking out for their bottom line. That consumers benefit from this is a side benefit.

 

[ComRadMac]

"They're identical to the real thing in every way, but don't have the same safety standards."

It sure seems like this would mean that they aren't identical in every way.

 

[Apple_Robert]

Apple's looking out for their bottom line. That consumers benefit from this is a side benefit.

I agree. I wasn't suggesting its just about us.

 

[aesc80]

$5 MagSafe chargers - yeah, I can only imagine how "safe" that one is!

 

[44267547]

"They're identical to the real thing in every way, but don't have the same safety standards."

It sure seems like this would mean that they aren't identical in every way.

You’re misunderstanding. Some of these products are virtually physically impossible to distinguish from counterfeit -versus- genuine OEM from Apple. The difference of above mentioned, some of these products don’t include the necessary electrical insulation that poses a fire hazard due to overheating.

 

[nutmac]

It's gotten to a point where I don't buy Apple products from Amazon or eBay. Too many counterfeits. I purchased few in the past and one was a very poor attempt at a counterfeit. When I contacted the seller (listed on Amazon), they offered to replace it with a refurbished genuine Apple product. Yeah right.

So, I now only buy Apple products from Apple Store, Best Buy, or B&H.

 

[MauiPa]

Apple's looking out for their bottom line. That consumers benefit from this is a side benefit.

Cynicism reigns

 

[MauiPa]

"They're identical to the real thing in every way, but don't have the same safety standards."

It sure seems like this would mean that they aren't identical in every way.

Beauty is skin deep. How would you know if you weren’t a tech and disassembled them? You are right, the author used a poor choice of words. Should have used something like appears to be identical, looks identical. Good to see I’m not the only one who still thinks words matter

 

[adrianlondon]

There's really no point in spending $10 on a dodgy cable from Instagram, when you can get the same dodgy cable for $2 from aliexpress

 

[now i see it]

Step 1: Chargers are no longer included with iPhone purchase
Step 2: Customers by the millions buy chargers from other sources
Step 3: Apl doesn't like that one bit so they spin a story warning that 3rd party chargers are dangerous

ok

 

[Apple_Robert]

It's gotten to a point where I don't buy Apple products from Amazon or eBay. Too many counterfeits. I purchased few in the past and one was a very poor attempt at a counterfeit. When I contacted the seller (listed on Amazon), they offered to replace it with a refurbished genuine Apple product. Yeah right.

So, I now only buy Apple products from Apple Store, Best Buy, or B&H.

I have done the same. I don't want to risk getting ripped off much less subjecting myself to unnecessary danger.

 

[Apple_Robert]

There's really no point in spending $10 on a dodgy cable from Instagram, when you can get the same dodgy cable for $2 from aliexpress

A lot of people here will spend $1K on a phone and then go to places like Aiexpress for cables and chargers. That is not wise, in my opinion.

 

[adrianlondon]

My iPhony came from there and it's fiunnnnxnna

 

[mi7chy]

As long as Apple doesn't abuse it and use it as a guise to eliminate the preowned market to force people to buy retail. Apple has already screwed over repair shops by abusing Customs and Borders Protection to illegally confiscate donor and refurbished parts out of genuine devices.

 

[bluespark]

Beauty is skin deep. How would you know if you weren’t a tech and disassembled them? You are right, the author used a poor choice of words. Should have used something like appears to be identical, looks identical. Good to see I’m not the only one who still thinks words matter

I agree -- "identical in every way" does not correctly describe these products. Many of them appear identical, but that's not the same thing.

 

[bluespark]

Step 1: Chargers are no longer included with iPhone purchase
Step 2: Customers by the millions buy chargers from other sources
Step 3: Apl doesn't like that one bit so they spin a story warning that 3rd party chargers are dangerous

ok

I don't think that's what is happening here at all. Apple is well aware many users will turn to third-party chargers. The concern here is with products that do not appear to be third party chargers but are not Apple chargers.

 

[Scoob Redux]

They're identical to the real thing in every way, but don't have the same safety standards.

If they were identical in every way, they would, by definition, meet the same safety standards. I think you mean "in every discernable way" or something similar.

 

[Scoob Redux]

You’re misunderstanding. Some of these products are virtually physically impossible to distinguish from counterfeit -versus- genuine OEM from Apple. The difference of above mentioned, some of these products don’t include the necessary electrical insulation that poses a fire hazard due to overheating.

"virtually physically impossible to distinguish" is not the same as "identical in every way"...that's the point. Maybe you misunderstood.

 

[44267547]

How would you know if you weren’t a tech and disassembled them?

If I recall, Macrumors actually posted physical breakdowns of counterfeit products -versus- OEM Apple products in the past to show the reader the differences, mainly with chargers.