Amazon’s Counterfeit Crimes Unit (CCU) has filed three lawsuits against multiple fraud sellers that combined submitted thousands of false copyright infringement claims against Amazon’s selling partners so that those sellers and their products can get removed from the Amazon store.
It is not uncommon for bad actors to falsely claim copyright ownership of a product or brand to have it removed from a platform such as Amazon. This practice is known as “copyright trolling.” In these cases, the bad actors usually send a DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) takedown notice to the platform, claiming that the product or brand is infringing on their copyright.
Amazon has taken legal action against three such bad actors who allegedly engaged in this practice. The lawsuits allege that the defendants falsely claimed to be legitimate copyright owners of certain products or brands, and submitted false DMCA takedown notices to Amazon in an attempt to have those products or brands removed from the Amazon Store.
Amazon is seeking damages and an injunction against the defendants to prevent them from engaging in this behavior in the future. This is a significant move by Amazon to protect its marketplace and the sellers who operate on it. prevent them from engaging in this behavior in the future. It is important to note that the misuse of DMCA takedown notices can have serious consequences, including legal liability for the sender. Platforms like Amazon have processes in place to review and potentially dispute DMCA takedown notices, and sellers should be aware of their rights and options if they receive such a notice.
Amazon has filed three lawsuits against bad actors that pretended to be legitimate copyright owners in an attempt to remove products from the Amazon Store. For the first time, Ecommerece giant has filed lawsuits against multiple groups that presented thousands of false copyright infringement claims against selling partners to remove those sellers and their products from the Amazon store. These fraudulent claims attempted to lessen customer choice, harm Amazon sellers, and destroy the virtue of Amazon’s stores.
Amazon launched a new offensive against bad actors by filing cases against scammers that target Amazon selling partners. By fighting against these bad actors, Amazon is supporting its ongoing commitment to guard all parties responsible for the success of the Amazon store, including buyers, brands, and selling partners.
The director of Amazon’s Counterfeit Crimes Unit (CUU), Kebharu Smith, said, “We know how important it is to our selling partners to have a consistent Amazon store experience, and we will be unrelenting in our pursuit of bad actors that attempt to undermine that experience.” Then he added, “These lawsuits should serve as a warning to anyone that uses fraud in an attempt to harm any of the millions of selling partners that work with Amazon every day.”
The eCommerce giant is consistently working to provide the tools sellers require to assist in safeguarding their intellectual property rights; an essential tool in that effort is the Amazon Brand Registry. Established in 2017, the Amazon Brand Registry is a complimentary service that gives brands a suite of tools for saving and constructing their brand.
With Brand Registry, automated protections scan over 8 billion everyday attempts to update listings to stop infringing listings from going live before a customer visits them. Brand Registry also authorizes brands to seize the benefit of Amazon’s image search technology which assists in brands identifying and reporting counterfeits using the “Report a Violation” tool. There has been a 99% drop in reports of suspected infringement by enrolled brands after the launch of the Brand Registry. These are just one of the many reasons why over 700,000 brands are presently enrolled in the Amazon Brand Registry.
To learn more about Brand Registry, its benefits & how it can help your brand to grow quickly, visit our post on Amazon Brand Registry.
Amazon has several strong protections to catch and prevent bad actors from trying to submit fake and abusive notices of infringement, and they continue to subsidize advanced technology and expert investigators that stop these delinquents from harming Amazon’s selling partners. Defendants in the lawsuits registered with Brand Registry and then created fake, disposable websites, with product images captured from the Amazon store, to use as false evidence when making numerous claims regarding selling partners infringing their copyrights. Amazon caught this attempted abuse and acted fast to save customers and sellers while closing the accounts of these bad actors. With these lawsuits, Amazon is taking things to a new level by assuring these offenders are held responsible for their actions.
The lawsuits were filed in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington under the case numbers:
2:23-cv-00484
2:23-cv-00485
2:23-cv-00486
Amazon’s CUU is a multinational team of former federal prosecutors, former law enforcement agents, experienced investigators, and data analysts. Amazon formed this team to work with brands and law enforcement to hold bad actors responsible for their actions.
How Sipransh Ecommgrowth Can Protect Your Brand & Products From These Fake Actors
Protecting the integrity of the marketplace is crucial for any e-commerce company, and this includes protecting its clients’ brands from fraud sellers who file false copyright claims against legitimate sellers to remove their competitors’ products and brands. Here are a few ways Sipransh Ecommgrowth can help their clients safeguard their brands:
Strengthen Intellectual Property Policies: Our team of experts can strengthen your policies on intellectual property to ensure that they are not being abused by fraud sellers. This can include putting in place strict verification processes for claims and providing clear guidelines on the kinds of evidence that are required to file a claim.
Implement a Verification Process: Our team can implement a verification process to ensure that only legitimate copyright owners can file claims. This can include asking for proof of ownership, such as trademark registration before a claim is accepted.
Monitor for Suspicious Activity: We also monitor for suspicious activity on their platform, such as an unusually high number of copyright claims against a particular seller or product. This can help them identify fraudulent claims and take action before they cause significant harm to the seller’s brand.
Encourage Seller Education: We encourage seller education to help sellers understand their intellectual property rights and what actions they can take to protect themselves from false copyright claims.
Legal Action: In extreme cases where fraudulent sellers are causing significant harm to legitimate sellers and their brands, we take legal action against the fraudulent sellers. This can include filing lawsuits against the fraud sellers and seeking damages for any harm caused to the legitimate sellers.
By implementing these strategies, we help our clients protect their brands from fraudulent sellers who file false copyright claims. This will create a safer and more trustworthy marketplace for all participants.
