Consumer Group Urges IPOPHL to Intensify Crackdown on Online Fake Goods

MANILA, Philippines — Consumer group Malayang Konsyumer has urged the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) to intensify its crackdown on fake goods sold online, citing health and safety risks. In a letter to IPOPHL Director General Teodoro Pascua, the group called for an “immediate, sustained and resolute” campaign against counterfeit products on e-commerce platforms. READ: Crackdown on counterfeits include fake auto parts The appeal comes despite enforcement by platforms and regulators. Lazada reported an 85.5-percent proactive takedown rate for fake goods from June 2024 to May 2025, while Shopee posted a 93.6-percent removal rate. Meanwhile, the Department of Trade and Industry’s E-Commerce Bureau issued 171 takedown orders and 67 compliance orders from June to December 2025, then another 268 takedown and 105 compliance orders in the first half of 2026. Still, the National Committee on Intellectual Property Rights seized P18.64 billion worth of counterfeit goods from June 2024 to May 2025, the group said. “The glaring truth could no longer be denied nor glossed over: the digital marketplace has become a 24/7 open market for dangerous, unregulated imitations,” said convenor Mark Jansen Magsano. READ: DA, IPOPHL bolster agri exports The group flagged fake medicines, vitamins, supplements, and beauty products that may contain toxic chemicals. It urged IPOPHL to launch motu proprio probes into online channels, issue takedown and compliance orders, coordinate with the National Telecommunications Commission for site blocking, and cancel permits of repeat violators. The group also pressed on IPOPHL’s Bureau of Legal Affairs to issue cease-and-desist orders, seize and condemn infringing goods, forfeit manufacturing equipment, and impose maximum fines. “It is clear that while e-commerce platforms and government agencies have already taken action, these efforts are not enough,” Magsano said. /pai