690 Domain Names Selling Counterfeit Products Seized by ICE

690 domain names that were illegally selling counterfeit products online were seized by Europol and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in partnership with ten law enforcement agencies from eight countries.

The 690 seized domain names were part of the “In Our Sites – Transatlantic 3” project.

297 domain names were seized in the United States,while 393 domain names were seized in Belgium, Denmark, France, Hungary, Romania ,Spain and the United Kingdom.

“Working with our international partners on operations like this shows the true global impact of IP Crime.Counterfeiters take advantage of the holiday spirit of shoppers around the world and sell cheap fakes to unsuspecting consumers everywhere. Consumers need to protect themselves, their families, and their personal financial information from the criminal networks operating these bogus sites,” said ICE Acting Director John Sandweg. 

“This operation is another good example of how transatlantic law enforcement cooperation works. It sends a signal to criminals that they should not feel safe anywhere. Unfortunately the economic downturn has meant that disposable income has gone down, which may tempt more people to buy products for prices that are too good to be true. Consumers should realize that, by buying these products, they risk supporting organized crime,” says Rob Wainwright, Director of Europol.

All 690 seized domain names are now in the custody of the governments involved in these operations.