BrandSecure Forum: Insights on Anti-Counterfeiting & Brand Protection

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OpSec Participates in Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics Press Conference

February 8th, 2010 by Thomas Taylor
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From Russia, With Security

OpSec Security in Red Square

On my recent trip to Moscow, I expected to marvel at the historical architecture of the city, to be taken back to a different time, but instead I was surprised by the transformation that has occurred over the past few years.  It seems Russia is in search of a new identity. While it has modernized, it still embraces its unique past. When it holds the world stage in 2014 for the Sochi Winter Olympic Games, the world will see a new Russia.

I went to Moscow to participate in a press conference hosted by the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee. At the press conference, we announced OpSec Security’s partnership with Goznak Unitary Enterprise, the official state agency of the Russian Federation. Our two organizations have partnered to provide global brand protection services for the Sochi 2014 brand. OpSec has a tradition of working with the Olympic Games—Turin, Sydney, Athens, and this year’s Vancouver games. With the integrity of the Sochi 2014 brand at the forefront of the Organizing Committee’s minds, there will be no detail overlooked in giving spectators, customers, and sponsors the experience they are expecting.

The Sochi 2014 Games will be the first to employ an integrated strategy of product authentication, tracking, and online brand protection, creating a new standard in brand protection for future Olympic Games. Such care and detailed planning is taking place because we are committed to protecting the countless consumers and fans of the games against counterfeit, unlicensed goods, as well as the many sponsors, licensees and partners who have provided financial support for the games.

Because of the increasing importance of the Internet, OpSec will also be monitoring the online marketplace to identify intellectual property infringements as well as counterfeit and unauthorized goods which are likely to show up on e-commerce platforms.  Our mission is to protect the logo, merchandise, and integrity of the Games, and we look forward to working with the Sochi 2014 Olympic Organizing Committee and with Goznak over the next 4 years.

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News: Apple Faces Suit Over Mussolini On iPhone

February 5th, 2010 by Terri Mock
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Italy’s state-owned film company says it will file suit over Apple’s use of recorded speeches and video of Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini.

The film archive is managed by Cinecitta Luce, which alleges the material played from an Apple iPhone application had been copied from a DVD without permission and was placed for sale on Apple’s online store ”with flagrant disregard for international copyright laws,” ANSA reported Wednesday.

Calls of outrage from Jewish groups and other iPhone users allegedly prompted Apple’s iMussolini compilation of more than 100 audio and film clips of il Duce to be removed from the iTunes store.

For full article, please see Post Chronicle

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News: Hollywood Studios Lose Australian Movie Piracy Suit

February 5th, 2010 by Terri Mock
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Feb. 4 (Bloomberg) — Hollywood’s biggest movie studios, including Walt Disney Co. and Paramount Pictures, lost a suit seeking to stop customers of Australia’s Iinet Ltd. from illegally downloading movies in a ruling that may set a precedent for the industry.

Iinet, Australia’s third-biggest Internet service provider, didn’t authorize copyright infringements and shouldn’t be held liable for the actions of its customers, Justice Dennis Cowdroy told the Federal Court in Sydney today, as he dismissed the suit.

The suit, led by Village Roadshow Ltd.’s Roadshow Films, sought to stop Iinet customers from using BitTorrent software to download films such as “Happy Feet” and “I Am Legend.” Disney, News Corp.’s 20th Century Fox, Sony Corp. and Viacom Inc’s Paramount joined the case.

For full article, please see BusinessWeek

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News: From e-media to i-media — how Apple will dominate all digital media sales…

February 5th, 2010 by Terri Mock
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It looks as if Apple iPad has no support for Adobe Flash video or Microsoft Silverlight, just as on the iPhone. That means no streaming video from Hulu, Netflix Direct, BBC iPlayer, etc.

But it is tightly coupled to the iTunes store, which now also has iBooks. And Apple has chosen a proprietary hardware and software design. This means that apps and content optimized to perform well on the iPad can’t be pirated onto other platforms, it’s an extra layer of digital rights management.

Apple has created a funnel through which media and app creators can deliver their content to customers. But they all have to have Apple approval and pay an Apple share of the revenues.

For full article, please see ZDNet

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News: Counterfeit Nikes on way to Haiti

February 5th, 2010 by Terri Mock
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1:10 A.M. — Lee Circuit Judge Edward Volz Jr. accomplished in two hours Thursday what a Fort Myers lawyer tried to do for 16 months.

The judge found a home in Haiti for almost 1,200 counterfeit Nike shoes.
So much for red tape.

“I was incredibly optimistic when I left the hearing,’’ defense attorney Pete Aiken said Thursday. “The judge made the right decision.’’

Volz had plenty of help from Fort Myers police, the state’s attorney office, Nike Inc. and Aiken.

For full article, please see News-Press

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News: Google making millions from advertising counterfeit goods

January 29th, 2010 by Terri Mock
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Google is making millions of pounds from fraudsters who pay to advertise counterfeit jewellery, clothing and electrical items on the search engine.

Hundreds of sites purporting to sell goods such as Ugg boots and Tiffany & Co jewellery pay up to £5 “per click” to Google to ensure that their site is prominently displayed as a sponsored link at the top of search results.

Thousands of Britons are being duped into buying goods that are fake or simply never arrive, as well as putting their credit or debit card details at risk of fraud.

For full article, please see TimesOnline

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News: Fake perfumes may contain bacteria, antifreeze – even urine

January 29th, 2010 by Terri Mock
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You could get more than you bargain for in a counterfeit perfume.

Fake fragrances may contain such nasties as urine, bacteria and antifreeze which will be absorbed into your skin along with all the other active ingredients, according to ABCNews.com.

Valerie Salembier, senior vice president and publisher of Harper’s Bazaar, sounded the warning on ABC’s “Good Morning America.”

“You’re putting something on your face, on your neck, on your wrists,” she said on “GMA.” “Those are sensitive parts of the body, so, to have active ingredients that could endanger your life is a very serious health risk.”

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News: The long wade to Win 7

January 29th, 2010 by Terri Mock
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While Microsoft’s latest retails better than Vista, it still has a long way to go to completely dethrone older OSes in India.

The old adage — if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it — rightly portrays Indian consumers’ scepticism about Windows 7, the three-month-old operating system (OS) from Microsoft.

Take the example of Aditya Thakore, an animation designer with a Hyderabad-based multimedia and design studio. Thakore is your quintessential Indian consumer who uses a computer for “basic browsing and office work.” He bought his laptop eight months ago, pre-loaded with Windows Vista. Despite hearing good things about the Win 7 OS, he is not too keen to upgrade. “It won’t make any difference to my usage, will it,” he asks.

For full article, please see Business Standard

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News: Sony’s ‘unhackable’ PlayStation 3 hacked

January 29th, 2010 by Terri Mock
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The PlayStation3 – previously considered unhackable – has been modified to run pirated software by an American who unlocked the original iPhone.

George Hotz told the BBC that he’s beaten the PlayStation 3’s piracy protection with a combination of hardware and software modifications.

The high-profile hacker admits that he hasn’t hacked the whole system and its protected memory, but says he’s tricked the console into doing what he wants it to.

“It’s supposed to be unhackable – but nothing is unhackable,” 20-year-old Hotz told BBC News.

For full article, please see The Independent

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News: Officials fear toxic ingredient in Botox could become terrorist tool

January 29th, 2010 by Terri Mock
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In early 2006, a mysterious cosmetics trader named Rakhman began showing up at salons in St. Petersburg, Russia, hawking a popular anti-aging drug at suspiciously low prices. He flashed a briefcase filled with vials and promised he could deliver more — “as many as you want,” he told buyers — from a supplier somewhere in Chechnya.

Rakhman’s “Botox” was found to be a potent clone of the real thing, but investigators soon turned to a far bigger worry: the prospect of an illegal factory in Chechnya churning out raw botulinum toxin, the key ingredient in the beauty drug and one of world’s deadliest poisons. A speck of toxin smaller than a grain of sand can kill a 150-pound adult.

For full article, please see The Washington Post

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