How the Internet gives leeway for fake products

Kenya is grappling with an increased number of counterfeit cosmetics that is proving hard to counter as online purchases rise.

Millennials and a booming middle class are now the new targets for the fake beauty products as they are more interested in name brands at a discount through all social media platforms.

On Facebook and Instagram, the pop up ads are constantly luring women with their cheaper options while beauty bloggers are paid handsomely to “sample” the products.

While Facebook is not an e-commerce platform, retailers can post products there and complete a transaction through e-mail or by directing shoppers to a landing page.

A popular beauty blogger, for instance, wears a Sh2,000 Covergirl foundation on her page and directs would-be buyers to the online shop which has paid for the review of the product.

Questionable

At Sh2,000, the foundation quality is questionable given the original one retails at not less than Sh3,000 in the international market. The Kenya Anti-Counterfeit Agency (ACA) says the booming market is proving to be a challenge since it is almost difficult to regulate.

“The enforcement agency works closely with the Kenya Bureau of Standards to ensure products that are below standard as well as fake ones are seized. However, the online market is a different ball game,” says Mike Aremon, the assistant director.

Aremon says while they make the efforts to deal with the ports of entry, the sellers always find ingenuous ways of going around the rules.

“Some of these goods are earmarked for export, they say they are going to neighbouring countries but end up in the Kenyan market through dubious means,” he says.

Principal surveillance officer at Kebs, Gilbert Rono, says while it is easy to track and spot counterfeit products in the shops, it is almost impossible to do the same with online markets.

“We issue import standardisation stickers on all products that pass through Kebs. By scanning the product, we can verify through a phone application the legitimacy of the products but the online sellers can simply avoid all these,” he says.