Szczytno/Poland, Budapest/Hungary – Learning about the latest tricks and methods of counterfeiters — this was the goal of law enforcement officers from more than nine countries as they attended three high-profile events in Eastern Europe put on with the support of Vis Probandi.

Danger at legitimate market places

At the IPR Protection Conference at the Police College in Szczytno, co-organized by Vis Probandi, Lukas Drlik listed the most dangerous challenges for brand holders today: illegal infiltration of distribution routes, advanced packaging techniques, online presentation of goods, and ingenious customers. ‘Brands and customers are being harmed in many ways and it is happening increasingly in legitimate market places and on online sites’, Drlik explained.

Maciej Zajda, also from Vis Propandi, spoke at the VI. IPR Protection Conference. He made it clear that customs and police personnel can face these new challenges by utilising results from preparative investigations and by following best practise methods while they work.

The ugly face of fraud behind online offers

At the conference, which was co-sponsored by Vis Probandi, he exposed the ‘ugly face’ of fraud behind genuine looking online offers. ‘Online is a special area with special risks’, Zajda explains, ‘authorities should make use of available background data, such as from previous private investigations’.

Of course, this requires a better understanding of all the forces involved, as Lukas Drlik and Zoltan Kovesdi made clear at the OHIM and HIPO IPR Enforcement Seminar in Budapest in November. Drlik and Kovesdi’s presentation was greatly appreciated by an international audience of police and customs representatives. All groups — officers, brand holders and private investigators —used the opportunity to discuss improvements for work processes and information exchange.