The Ministry of Domestic Trade, Co-operatives and Consumerism (MDTCC) successfully raids a syndicate that was selling counterfeit Microsoft products, complete with fake certificates of authenticity (COA).

Dato’ Mohd Roslan Mahayudin, Director of Enforcement says: “The operation resulted in the recovery and seizure of more than 1,000 fake COAs and numerous counterfeit Microsoft box products, valued at more than RM800,000. This includes 18 personal computer systems, card printing machines, CD-ROM burning machines and other equipment used to produce fake products.”

Dato’ Roslan also reveals that the modus operandi of the seller was to place advertisements via online marketplaces. Since the advertisements are generally non-specific, unsuspecting customers are easily deceived into believing the authenticity of the items.

As an effort to combat the sale of counterfeit software at online marketplaces, the MDTCC brought together five online marketplaces to sign a pledge to remove any sale of counterfeit Microsoft software from their portals. These online marketplaces include Lazada, 11street, Lelong.my, Mudah.my and LogOn.

Image: Citizen Digital