(Music)
Narrator: American consumers drive not only the American economy,
but much of the global economy as well.
This makes the United States a favorite market
for legitimate manufacturers the world over.
And from storefronts on city streets,
and in shopping malls,
to websites online,
Americans can find virtually
anything they want.
Unfortunately, this also makes us a favorite target
for counterfeiters: terrorists and criminals who pocket huge
profits by manufacturing fakes.
Everything from fashion apparel and pirated media
to military-grade electronics and pharmaceuticals.
Counterfeit goods are often made of inferior materials,
manufactured under uncontrolled and unsanitary conditions,
and labeled with false information.
As a result, they can threaten the health and safety
of the people who buy them.
Fake products violate the intellectual property rights of
legitimate companies, and undermine those companies' reputations.
They deprive workers here at home and
overseas of badly needed jobs.
A large percentage of counterfeit and pirated products
are manufactured overseas. They are shipped to the United States
in the stream of legitimate goods that continually flow into
America's airports and seaports and across our borders.
There to stop them are the men and women of U.S. Customs
and Border Protection, protecting America 24/7.
Therese Randazzo: The overall volume of US imports
makes it a real challenge for CBP in terms of IPR enforcement,
because we have to decide which of the hundreds of millions
of shipments that enter the United States every year
are suspect shipments for possible counterfeit or pirated goods,
while at the same time ensuring the expeditious release into
commerce of authentic goods. To put those numbers in context,
on a daily basis CBP processes about 77,000 commercial
shipments. That's more than 28 million cargo shipments every
year. In addition to that, there's more than 250 million
shipments arriving in mail and express small parcels, some of
which are commercial in nature, that we still have to look
and decide which of those to examine.
So the real challenge for us is sorting the good stuff
from the bad stuff and deciding what to inspect.
NARRATOR: The challenge might seem hopeless, but CBP has
developed methodical strategies and powerful tools to support
the effort. CBP has a multi-layered strategy to
enforce intellectual property rights.
It is a three-part strategy:
Facilitate, Enforce and Deter.
Randazzo: With regard to facilitation, we're looking to
identify the authentic shipments, without inspection,
so that those goods are released immediately into commerce,
reducing the cost to US importers and more effectively
using CBP's resources.
Narrator: U.S. law requires importers to provide CBP with
documentation for incoming shipments well ahead of their arrival.
CBP uses this manifest and entry data
to help identify suspicious shipments.
In addition, through agreements with America's
trading partners, CBP maintains teams of officers and
investigators around the world to help identify suspect
shipments even before they begin their journey
to the United States.
Randazzo: With regard to enforcement, that's about making
seizures, targeting the right shipments, determining that
those goods are infringing and seizing those, and then ensuring
that those goods are ultimately destroyed.
Narrator: When an analysis raises a red flag,
CBP issues an alert to the expected port of entry.
CBP officers stop it from entering the country
and subject it to rigorous inspection.
Trained Import Specialists make a quick evaluation.
If the goods appear to be counterfeit,
they are detained pending further analysis,
and samples are often sent to CBP's Laboratories and
Scientific Services for laboratory testing.
If the analysis proves deceit,
the goods are seized and destroyed.
Just as important, CBP and its partner agencies launch an
investigation of both the importer
and the source of the bogus products.
In this regard, CBP plays a key role in the National
Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center.
The IPR Center coordinates a multi-agency effort
to review and vet possible IPR infringement cases,
assigning on a case-by-case basis
which law enforcement agency will lead investigations
and pursue prosecutions.
To further strengthen IPR enforcement,
CBP supplements its targeting activities
with random inspections at US ports of entry.
Vernon Foret: Recent trends indicate a rise
in the attempted smuggling of counterfeit products
through our courier service and international mail environments.
These shipments are pharmaceuticals, contact lenses.
To counter this trend, CBP has increased inspection efforts
at our international mail and courier service facilities.
Randazzo: The third piece is the deterrence part, where we want
to prevent future violations by conducting audits of importers
that are involved in counterfeiting and piracy,
to deter them from bringing any future goods by depriving them
of the profitability of that activity.
We make referrals to Immigration and Customs
Enforcement for criminal investigations to take down the
organizations that are involved,
and we issue penalties finally to re-importers as well.
Narrator: CBP continually examines this information on
incoming shipments, targeting not just potential IPR
violations, but high-risk shipments of all types.
Analysts review shipment documentation,
intelligence from overseas teams,
and historical data on importers and suspect manufacturers.
They use an extensive database of legitimate product
and trademark information to identify discrepancies.
Stopping counterfeit shipments at the border is essential, but
a permanent solution involves stopping counterfeiting and
piracy at their source and eliminating demand.
That requires partnering with the trade industry and customs
agencies worldwide.
And winning the public's cooperation by educating
consumers about the dangers associated with counterfeit products.
Randazzo: You're supporting organized crime when you buy
counterfeit products, and no one wants to promote organized crime
on our streets.
The money that is made by counterfeiting is used to
launder drugs, weapons,
a whole host of other illegal activities.
Narrator: When CBP identifies business practices linked to IPR
theft, it works with the trade industry
to change those practices.
It shares with appropriate US enforcement agencies
information acquired during investigations,
through channels such as the IPR Center.
It works with the Department of Defense to help secure the
military's supply chain for mission-critical components,
parts and materials.
And it works with IPR specialists from foreign customs
agencies and international customs organizations
to implement best practices that protect both U.S.
and overseas economies.
CBP also strongly encourages American consumers
to do their part.
Kevin Corsaro: Consumers can avoid purchasing counterfeit
merchandis e by first knowing what the genuine article typically costs.
If the price seems too good to be true, it probably is.
And it may indicate that the product is fake.
You can familiarize yourself with what the genuine
product looks like. The manufacturer's website
is a good source of information.
Check the quality of the workmanship.
Most counterfeit products are inferior, and quickly show
their inferior construction and materials.
And buy from reputable retailers.
Beware of Internet sellers; products offered online
are not always what they appear to be.
NARRATOR: Businesses and the public can assist CBP in the
campaign against counterfeit and pirated products.
Through an online program called E-Recordation, businesses can
record with CBP any trademarks and copyrights that have been
registered with the US Patent and Trademark Office
or the Copyright Office.
An E-Recordation record provides CBP with information necessary
to determine when imported products infringe
on a company's IP rights.
Businesses can also assist CBP by sharing product information,
keeping product information guides up to date,
and providing product training to CBP personnel.
And businesses and the public can report suspicious trade
activities to CBP through E-Allegations.
E-Allegations is an online system that accepts reports
of possible violations as long as the reports are substantiated
and include actionable information.
CBP is continually improving its efforts against IPR violators
through steady improvements in technology, training, and
procedures. And it is having an effect.
But CBP needs your help.
For more information about CBP and IPR,
visit this web address on cbp.gov
(Closing Music)