Abbott product distribution faces monopoly queries
The National Steering Committee on the Prevention and Control of Smuggling, Trade Fraud and Fake Commodities has asked the Ministry of Health to adjust regulations to help firms import Abbott’s Ensure milk products in order to prevent monopoly.
The move came after the committee reported that US-based Abbott Laboratories and its exclusive Vietnamese distributor 3A Nutrition Vietnam Co., Ltd appeared to be monopolising the distribution of the vanilla-flavoured Ensure original shake into Vietnam.
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Gulf states plan laws to curb fuel smuggling
‘If there’s a subsidy, countries don’t want those products to be sent across the border’ UAE energy minister says. Abu Dhabi: Gulf countries including the UAE and Saudi Arabia are formulating new legislation to curb fuel smuggling, the UAE energy minister said on Tuesday.
Smuggling of fuel, including diesel, gasoline and other products, is frequent across the borders of some Gulf Arab states, where different levels of fuel subsidies create price gaps that criminals can exploit.
http://gulfnews.com/business/oil-gas/gulf-states-plan-laws-to-curb-fuel-smuggling-1.1440816
Lear MoreNot very smart: Man busted for smuggling 94 iPhones strapped to body
When it comes to smuggling, not all mules are created equal.Chinese customs officials on Sunday busted a Hong Kong man trying to sneak 94 iPhones into the mainland — by strapping them on his body.The man caught the attention of inspectors at the Futian crossing in Shenzhen, a southern Chinese metropolis bordering Hong Kong, when he walked like someone carrying a heavy load despite appearing to travel light, customs officials told CNN on Tuesday.
http://edition.cnn.com/2015/01/13/asia/china-iphone-smuggler/
Lear MorePharma crime: news in brief
Orange capsulesMHRA actions, an FDA import alert, spurious antibiotics in Bangladesh, as well as fake Recormon and stolen Abbott drugs in the Philippines. The UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has said it took action to close down more than 1,600 websites illegally advertising and selling medicines last year, with many of the medicines offered falsified, counterfeit or unlicensed. The agency’s enforcement officers also seized illegal medicines with a value of more than £3m, mainly erectile dysfunction drugs and slimming products but also sleeping pills and antidepressants, with the most common countries of origin India and China.
http://www.securingindustry.com/pharmaceuticals/pharma-crime-news-in-brief/s40/a2236/#.VLS6rdKUfNc
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Launch of Apple smartwatch soured by fakes
Apple WatchAs Apple gears up to launch its new smartwatch the lamentable yet inevitable tide of fakes has already begun.The technology giant’s smartwatch is rumoured to be launched in March this year, but at the highly publicised Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2015) in Las Vegas, Nevada, last week a Chinese company was spotted by reporters selling allegedly fake versions of the product.
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Tanzania: Some Fake Goods Are Dangerous
JUMA Mlagaja bought fake electrical wiring cables unwittingly for his new multi-million shilling house at Kigamboni. All went well until the wiring job was complete. When the lights were turned on there was a shocking explosion. The house went up in flames. Mlagaja collapsed, but he survived. What Mlagaja did not know was that most of the electrical paraphernalia he had bought from various shops in Dar es Salaam were fake, counterfeit or substandard.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201501120631.html
Lear MoreMicrosoft, Alibaba collaborate to take on counterfeit software products
Tech giant Microsoft has collaborated with Chinese online retailer Alibaba Group to remove counterfeit and unlicensed software from the online retailer’s Taobao Marketplace and Tmall.com online shopping websites.
As part of the MOU agreement, Alibaba has agreed to remove product listings for suspected counterfeit or unlicensed Microsoft products from Taobao Marketplace and Tmall.com upon receiving complaints from Microsoft.
Lear MoreThree are arrested in Malaga
Three Dundalk residents are believed to be among five Irish nationals, a Norwegian and a Spanish lawyer arrested in what is understood to be a major Spanish police operation against tobacco smuggling linked to south Armagh, as well as alleged money laundering.he arrests are understood to include Mountpleasant husband and wife, Donna Maguire and Leonard ‘Bap’ Hardy, who were given prison sentences in Holland and Germany for their parts in IRA attacks in Europe in the late 1980s.
http://www.independent.ie/regionals/argus/news/three-are-arrested-in-malaga-30883258.html
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iPhone users targeted in fake purse text scam
A text-message spam campaign that flooded mobile phones and irritated perhaps millions of iPhone users last summer reared its ugly head again recently. The messages offer recipients a cheap way to order designer products like handbags and sunglasses. In a curious twist, one researcher says those who “fall” for the spam appear to get what they order. But it’s still a scam — the bags are fakes, of course, sent directly from China. And who knows what really happens to the personal information you give the spammers.
http://www.wkbw.com/news/us-news-world/iphone-users-targeted-in-fake-purse-text-scam
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Alibaba, Microsoft agree to crack down on counterfeit software
Alibaba Group and Microsoft have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to enhance the security of Microsoft’s intellectual property rights on two of Alibaba’s e-commerce platforms, Taobao marketplace and Tmall.com. As part of the MOU, Alibaba will strengthen anti-counterfeit measures on the two sites, such as by removing product lists suspected of offering counterfeit or unlicensed Microsoft products.
http://www.zdnet.com/article/alibaba-microsoft-agree-to-crack-down-on-counterfeit-software/
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