
TOKYO – Japanese brands from Canon to Meiji are warning consumers at home and abroad to be vigilant against fakes, amid a proliferation of counterfeits that masquerade as the real thing through social media advertisements or major e-commerce platforms.
These are often, but not always, promoted through fake social media ads that tout too-good-to-be-true prices or limited-time-period sales that link to a fake website when a buyer clicks through. Alternatively, some merchants have taken advantage of the loose checks provided on e-commerce platforms to sell fake goods.
If the price seems too good to be true, they may well be, said companies, with many warning of the health risks that come with using or consuming phoney products that – while being a scourge for long – have grown in sophistication.
Once the purview of fashion, counterfeits have now surfaced in an ever-widening range of industries and products – from chocolates to health and water purification devices – over the past year. While their origins have been difficult to trace, Japanese authorities note that they are mostly made and sold by Chinese or South-east Asian syndicates.
The problem is so widespread that counterfeit Japanese goods have surfaced in other Asian markets. The Japan External Trade Organisation entered into an agreement on Dec 20 with Vietnam’s enforcement agencies to identify and crack down on counterfeit Japanese goods that are being made in the country, or to stop their imports at customs.
These inter-governmental efforts supplement the efforts by individual companies to warn consumers against the purchase of fake goods through circulars on their websites.
Omron, a maker of health-tracking devices like blood pressure monitors, is among the worst hit. The company was spotlighted, along with earphone brand Ambie, in an August 2024 circular by Japan’s Consumer Affairs Agency after a spate of complaints from domestic buyers who had unwittingly bought counterfeit goods.
These consumers had bought fake goods at extreme discounts, having been fooled by the use of official brand logos to believe the item was authentic. The consumers, however, made their purchases from sites with domain names that were unaffiliated with Omron.
Regional problem
A spokeswoman for the Kyoto-based firm told The Straits Times on Dec 26 that counterfeits have also surfaced abroad, with the company receiving about 150 complaints per month. The Philippines, she said, is the most affected regional market.
“For every authentic Omron blood pressure monitor sold on e-commerce platforms in the Philippines, approximately 1.23 fake units are sold,” the company’s spokeswoman said, citing data from e-commerce consultancy aCommerce. “This means more counterfeit products are sold than genuine ones.”
Other regional markets affected include Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore, she said, adding that Omron has been alerting the respective domestic watchdogs, such as Singapore’s Health Sciences Authority, of incidents.
“The importance of enforcing the sale of original, authentic blood pressure monitors cannot be overstated, given their critical role in preventing life-threatening conditions such as stroke and heart attack,” the spokeswoman said.
“Accurate blood pressure monitoring is essential for effective hypertension management and cardiovascular risk reduction,” she added, noting the risks of creating a “false sense of security” were a counterfeit product to mislead users of their health conditions.
While Omron has assiduously been reporting fake advertisements on social media to the respective operators, this is a cat-and-mouse game, as every site taken down could lead to others mushrooming as “scammers create new profiles”.
Even as social media platforms have vowed to tackle scam ads through stringent checks, they have struggled to filter these out effectively, given the sheer volume of ads that have cropped up on their sites. This comes as some merchants of counterfeits exploit the ad tools by mimicking accurately legitimate businesses, products or celebrity endorsements.
Facebook and Instagram operator Meta and its Japanese subsidiary were in October 2024 sued by 29 people and one company for allowing social media advertisements that impersonate celebrities in promising instant riches. They are seeking 430 million yen (S$3.7 million) in damages.
The plaintiffs complain that Meta has failed to do enough to prevent the fake ads, although Meta has argued that it is difficult to fully eliminate such problematic ads.
Modus operandi
The authorities in Japan have ramped up warnings, with the Japan Patent Office launching a campaign in 2024 to warn against counterfeits, in which buyers may also be held culpable.
In its campaign, the Japan Patent Office said one common tactic for purveyors of counterfeit goods was to reel consumers in through hefty discounts for bulk purchases or limited-time-only sales.
This would lead them to click through to a webpage that either mimics the real site or passes off as an authorised retailer by displaying real brand logos.
The website would typically be of a false domain that is unrelated to the official webpage, and would typically be an unsecured website – with a URL that does not begin with “https://” – that offers limited payment method options.
It could also be a major e-commerce platform, although there are telltale signs, such as too-good-to-be-true discounts offered by anonymous merchants whose contact details are not readily made available.
The authority said that just because a product reflects a brand logo or a serial number does not necessarily mean it is real.
Legal action
In September 2024, home appliance maker Lixil declared war against counterfeits of its water purification cartridges, which remove impurities like chlorine and perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, in tap water, vowing to take legal action against any infringement of intellectual property rights.
This comes after repeated warnings that had failed to stop the spread of fakes which, Lixil said in a statement, “not only betray customers’ expectations and trust in the product, but also have the potential to pose a safety hazard”. It has taken out television advertisements in Japan to raise awareness.
Broadcaster Nippon TV conducted tests of one such fake product – with the cooperation of Lixil – and showed that it removed only 30 per cent of impurities.
Canon has gone further to take legal action in the US, filing a trademark infringement lawsuit in Washington on Dec 3 against 18 retailers which are alleged to have sold counterfeit toner cartridges for printers.
Brand equity
Sports equipment maker Yonex – which sponsors multiple badminton professionals, including reigning Olympic singles champions Viktor Axelsen of Denmark and An Se-Young of South Korea – decried how counterfeits are becoming more sophisticated and “difficult to distinguish from genuine products just by appearance”.
“But they not only differ in specifications and performance from genuine products, but are also inferior in quality and safety, posing a risk of injury or accident,” Yonex said in a consumer advisory, adding that it recommends purchases from trusted retailers.

Goldwin, an outdoor gear maker and distributor of The North Face products in Japan, is similarly afflicted.
“Most of these counterfeit products are of poor quality, and wearing or using them may cause health damage or harm to customers,” it said in November 2024. “Some sellers write reviews in order to receive rewards, so seller reviews cannot be trusted.”
Meiji, which offers a range of dairy, confectionery and other products, said in September 2024 that it was strengthening its efforts to protect the company’s trademark over its popular chocolate snack Kinoko no Yama, which is made in the shape of little mushrooms and is also sold overseas.
“If we don’t exercise our rights, we won’t be able to maintain our brand value,” a Meiji representative was quoted in domestic media as saying, adding that it was relatively easy to copy confectionery by imitating the style without adopting the Meiji brand.
When all else fails, the authorities hope to appeal to people’s self-interest, warning that buying fake goods could even jeopardise one’s privacy.
“People who make counterfeit goods have no morals,” the Japan Patent Office said. “If they think they can make money, they will have no qualms about peddling your important personal information. Your name, address, phone number and card number may be misused.”
Source: The Straits Times (Updated 5 January 2025)