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Amazon Counterfeit Crimes Unit (CCU)

Amazon Counterfeit Crimes Unit (CCU) works with brands, law enforcement, and customers across the globe to stop bad actors and hold them accountable.

We want to stop counterfeiters, no matter where they are - both online and offline. We created CCU to pursue these criminals and defend the rights of brand owners and protect customers and consumers from counterfeit products.
Bringing Bad Actors to Justice

We use every tool at our disposal to find and remove counterfeit from our stores. We work with brands of all sizes, and independently if necessary, to pursue counterfeiters. Our combined efforts give law enforcement the evidence to stop criminals in their tracks. Together, we continue to pursue legal consequences against counterfeiters for their actions.

Detecting Counterfeit Globally

We partner closely with brands to collect information about their intellectual property and products. We detect, investigate, and remove counterfeit items from our stores and identify bad actors as targets for prosecution all over the world.

Taking Action Against Bad Actors

We work closely with brands to stop counterfeiters by conducting investigations, referring cases to law enforcement, and pursuing litigation to seize counterfeit products and get justice for right owners.

Disrupting Counterfeit Networks

Together, we identify and pursue counterfeiters at every link in their supply chain, and manufacturing, distribution, logistics, and financial resources. These actions help reclaim illicit funds and deter counterfeiters from continuing their operations in our stores.

Watch: Amazon CCU works with brands, customs agencies, and law enforcement to track down counterfeiters, shut down bad actors’ accounts, seize counterfeit inventory, and prosecute those involved.

15M+ counterfeit products worldwide were identified, seized, and appropriately disposed of by Amazon in 2024, preventing them from harming customers or being resold elsewhere in the supply chain.

24,000 bad actors pursued by the Amazon Counterfeit Crimes unit through litigation and criminal referrals to law enforcement.

Latest News
CCU has an extensive history of protecting brands and taking action to hold bad actors accountable. Read about new partnerships, lawsuits, and other noteworthy stories about CCU.
The action marks Amazon’s first-ever joint lawsuit against fake review brokers.
This World Anti-Counterfeiting Day, we reflect on a productive 2023 and acknowledge the continual efforts of our global partners to combat counterfeiters.
Amazon and Canon have filed a joint lawsuit targeting bad actors alleged to have sold counterfeit Canon camera batteries and chargers.
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.
Bad actors sought to evade Amazon’s detection by listing generic products in Amazon’s store while purposefully promoting counterfeits on social media
Amazon continues to take down bad actors wherever they operate with the company’s first joint civil lawsuit in Europe.
Intelligence from Amazon’s Counterfeit Crimes Unit helped law enforcement remove more than 10,000 counterfeit automotive grilles from the global supply chain.
Amazon and World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. (WWE) have filed joint lawsuits to protect customers and the authenticity of WWE-branded championship title belts.
Latest Brand Protection Report highlights how Amazon safeguards customers, brands and selling partners from counterfeiters
Permanently Banning them from Amazon’s Store and Securing Financial Payments to be Donated to Support Anti-Counterfeiting Awareness
Amazon, GE, and GE Appliances file a joint lawsuit to protect customers and the authenticity of GE-branded water filters.
Bad Actors Attempted to Bypass Amazon’s Protections by Listing Generic Products while Purposefully Promoting Counterfeits to their Social Media Followers
New, global team is dedicated to investigating, finding, and launching legal action and criminal referrals against counterfeiters
Lawsuit is a First for Both Brands: Amazon’s First Joint Litigation with a Luxury Fashion Brand and Valentino’s First Joint Litigation with an Online Retailer
How do I get started with CCU?

As a brand, you must:
• Be enrolled with Amazon Brand Registry with an active registered trademark.

Identify that your goods were counterfeited and available on Amazon.

As law enforcement, you must have an open and active investigation that:
Involves counterfeit or potential counterfeit.

Establishes a good faith that subject of your investigation is an Amazon seller.

To learn more, read the CCU frequently asked questions.

What Brands Are Saying
bmw_logo_712.png

“The Amazon and BMW teams have come together in the fight against counterfeit in a way that exemplifies true partnership. Leveraging their machine learning technology to identify and target counterfeit indicators provided by our team has yielded solid results—most recently with the filing of the joint civil action in October 2023. We are proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish together so far to keep customers safe from bad actors and are motivated to continue to work together to achieve a lasting impact.”
Dr. Jochen Volkmer
Head of Intellectual Property Law, Trademarks, Designs, BMW Group
Phillips logo

“The collaboration between Amazon’s CCU, the London Police’s Intellectual Property Crime Unit and Philips has been instrumental to protect our customers from counterfeit electric-toothbrush heads. This successful raid emphasizes the importance of collaboration between companies and law enforcement to combat counterfeiting and uphold our commitment to improve people’s health and well-being through meaningful innovation.”
Hannie van Iersel
Head of Trademark and Design, Philips