Four years ago, e-commerce giant Alibaba managed to get one of its sites, Taobao, removed from the United States Trade Representative’s list of “notorious markets” around the world that are known for counterfeit or pirated products. Just as Alibaba is trying to be accepted as a respectable global brand, the USTR has put the site back on the list. [More]
counterfeiting
Alibaba Founder Jack Ma: No, I Didn’t Mean That Counterfeit Goods Are Better Than Originals
By 6.23.16
Remarks to investors in China by Alibaba Group founder and CEO Jack Ma about the improving quality of counterfeit and knockoff goods must not have gone over well with the foreign name brands that the company hopes to attract to sell on its platforms. Ma sent an op-ed to the Wall Street Journal explaining that he didn’t actually mean that counterfeit goods are better. [More]
Advice To Aspiring Counterfeiters: Print The Correct President On Your Bills
By 7.31.12
We’re not normally in the business of giving advice to criminals, but some aspiring counterfeiters in Arizona might want to study up on their American history. They allegedly tried to pass fake $100 bills with the image of Benjamin Franklin on the note, but a watermark of Abraham Lincoln. Oh, those Founding Fathers all look alike. [More]
U.S. Mint Redesigns Penny
By 2.18.10
Here’s the new design for the back of the 2010 penny. Instead of the Lincoln Memorial there’s now a shield, or maybe a tiny badge that you can flash whenever you want to announce, “I have jurisdiction over your pocket change.” No, I’m pretty sure it’s a shield. [More]
Meet Your New $5 Bill
By 3.15.08
If you liked Harold And The Purple Crayon, boy are you going to love the new $5 bill. Lincoln’s last stand after the penny will inherit the same counterfeiting countermeasures found on more valuable bills, and will come bruised with a large purple five “to help those with visual impairments distinguish the denomination.’ That’s right, never again will you confuse a $5 bill for a $50 bill.
