What you should know and how to act if your brand is affected
Has your brand been exposed to fake websites or advertisements that purport to sell your products? Or has your brand been illegally used in fake advertisements where a public figure is allegedly promoting your products in paid campaigns on social media? Then you are not alone – the number of online frauds continues to increase and an example of how consumers were deceived by fake Lindex websites and advertisements can be found here . In this article, Jennifer Rönnerhed, lawyer at Rouse, highlights how brand owners and consumers can navigate online frauds linked to e-commerce.
According to the Internet Foundation’s report “ Swedes and the Internet 2024, ” 95% of all Swedes use the internet. [1] Many of us also buy products and services online. In 2024, 1 in 10 shopped on average once a month on the Chinese low-cost e-commerce platforms Shein or Temu. This amounts to over 800,000 orders per month. [2] As we shop more online, the number of frauds linked to e-commerce is also increasing, often via fake websites and advertisements.
Fake pages are often promoted on social media such as TikTok, Facebook and Instagram. Those who click on the ad are typically redirected to a website to purchase products. More and more internet users are encountering websites that illegally use other people’s brands. Behind the fake pages or ads is often a third party with no connection to the brand, which can result in consumers either being left without their product or receiving a product that may be hazardous to health.
It can also appear as if a product is being promoted by a public figure, even if the person is not connected to the brand at all. Often, images or names of famous people are used as a trick to build credibility and thereby trick more people into buying.
Trademark owners have the ability to take action to take down websites and advertisements that illegally use their trademark.
- Monitor domain names and social media ads. Domain name monitoring means that you become aware when a third party is using your brand in a domain name. By identifying the domain name in connection with the registration date, action can be taken at an early stage. Social media ads are usually active for shorter periods of time, but even these ads can damage a brand as social media users are exposed to ads that can lead to fake pages.
- Takedown means that the content in question is removed. The purpose is to prevent further damage, for example to your brand, by removing the content from the platform where it was published. If you have identified a website or advertisement that has active content linked to your brand, we at Rouse can assist with evaluating and reporting the content.
- UDRP if necessary to control the domain name. A UDRP (Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy) is an administrative domain name procedure where a trademark owner can gain control over a domain name that has been illegally registered by a third party. There are 3 conditions for being successful with a UDRP, including that the domain name is similar/identical to the registered trademark. Do not hesitate to contact us if you would like more information about UDRP.
- Report to the police if your brand has been the victim of an e-commerce scam.
But we are all consumers, so what should you keep in mind when shopping online or suspecting that you have been the victim of an online scam:
- Identify what the domain name is on the website. A domain name is an Internet address, e.g. rouse.com. If you want to visit Rouse’s official website rouse.com, but are at rouse.linkedin.com – then you are visiting the website linkedin.com – not Rouse. Be vigilant about the domain name address.
- Review the entire website carefully and look for spelling errors, longer text passages to identify suspicious machine translations into Swedish, contact information, return policy, etc.
- Think before you buy something – is the price too good to be true? Compare with the company’s official website if possible.
- Report to the police if you suspect you have been the victim of e-commerce fraud.
- Contact the company you thought you purchased products from to inform them about the website/ad.
If you, as a trademark owner, have questions about how you can strengthen your trademark protection online and work proactively to act quickly in the event of unauthorized use of your trademark online, you are most welcome to contact us at Rouse.
For further information, please contact:
Jennifer Rönnerhed, Rouse
jronnerhed@rouse.com
[1] https://svenskarnaochinternet.se/rapporter/svenskarna-och-internet-2024/internetanvandning/
[2] https://www.svenskhandel.se/rapporter/e-handelsindikatorn-helar-2024
