CNBC Quiz: Counterfeit Goods
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How much do you know about the global industry of counterfeit goods? Take our quiz and find out.
Posted 14 July 2010
In June 2010, three people were convicted in Los Angeles for selling counterfeit jewelry containing what toxin?
- Cadmium
- Lead
- Mercury
- Toxaphene
James Ken Oh and his wife Jacqueline were the owners of Elegance Fashion Mart, a Los Angeles jewelry store. Along with store manager Joon Yeop Kim, they pleaded guilty to charges of introducing and delivering a hazardous substance. At issue was counterfeit jewelry that lab tests showed contained lead. A lot of lead. In fact, it was almost 20 times the amount of lead declared safe for handling by children by the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Despite the high content of the toxic material, the three sold the jewelry with a label declaring it "lead free."
What is the most commonly counterfeited bill in the United States?
- $1
- $20
- $50
- $100
According to the Secret Service Agency, the most commonly counterfeited denomination in the United States is the $20 bill. By contrast, the $100 bill is the most counterfeited note outside of the US. Lately, however, even small bills such as $1 and $5 notes have been seen in low-income neighborhoods, such as the Florence-Firestone section of South Los Angeles. "It's gotten to the point where they are counterfeiting the ones and the fives," said Efren Martinez of the Florence-Firestone Chamber of Commerce. "Normally business owners don't check those."
In the English county of Surrey, what type of liquor was recently sold in counterfeit form to pub customers?
- Gin
- Rum
- Vodka
- Whiskey
In July 2010, officers from the Trading Standards Institute found that fake alcoholic beverages were being sold at pubs in Surrey, England. In many cases, counterfeiters had simply replaced the contents of expensive champagne bottles with cheap wine, with no ill effect to anything but the customer's pride. However, the pubs were also selling counterfeit vodka in Glen's and Spar Imperial bottles, and the phony booze had a methanol level that was much higher than normal. This extra ingredient put pub patrons at risk of nausea, vomiting and, in extreme cases, blindness.
What Japanese car company has asked the Chinese government to stop counterfeiters from making copies of their products?
- Honda
- Nissan
- Subaru
- Toyota
Although the epidemic of Chinese counterfeit products has affected several Japanese car companies, Nissan has petitioned the Chinese government more than any other, racking up hundreds of separate complaints. In 2010 there have been discoveries of dampers, lights and even a malfunctioning airbag bearing the Nissan logo, or a misspelled version of it. Some of these products even bore "Made In Japan" labels. Unfortunately, Nissan has an uphill climb ahead of them, as the Chinese legal system does not require judges to recognize trademark violations, and the courts do not require that Chinese firms actually submit evidence.
What counterfeit military item was found in an Afghan army supply warehouse?
- Phosphorous grenade
- Sniper rifle
- Tourniquet
- Tripwire
Counterfeit tourniquets have been found in an Afghan army supply warehouse. Although it isn't known how they actually got there, the US provides a great deal of the Afghan military's equipment, making it a distinct possibility that the fake goods were purchased by the US military on the Afghan army's behalf. Understandably, officials are concerned that the fake tourniquets could one day make it into Defense Department supply channels and onto the battlefield. This would likely have fatal results - according to Colonel John Kragh of the US Army Institute of Surgical Research, the tourniquets were "fairly crude and could not possibly work."
What feature does US paper currency have to differentiate it from the counterfeit version?
- Adam Weishaupt's image in the watermark
- Fluorescent thread
- Hemp fiber
- India ink
In order to tell the difference between a real bill and a fake, US paper currency has fluorescent polyester thread woven into it. When a bill is examined under an ultraviolet light, a legitimate one should glow a particular color depending on the value of the bill. In a $20 bill, for example, the strip should glow green.
What measure are Pennsylvania casinos not using with their new poker chips to stop the use of counterfeit ones?
- Microscopic text
- Product authentication software
- Radio Frequency Identification technology
- Ultraviolet images
Pennsylvania casinos are introducing several new measures to stop the use of counterfeit chips, but product identification software is not one of them. The casinos are using such anti-counterfeiting techniques as miniature text on each chip that requires a magnifying glass to detect it, and chips with images that can only be seen under ultraviolet light. The most advanced technology, however, is found in the new "smart" chip, which contains a microchip that permits a sensor to validate it with Radio Frequency Identification technology. This technology is similar to that used in E-Zpass toll collection systems, and it can not only validate the authenticity of a chip but also monitor a player's betting and award complimentary gifts, like free visits to the salad bar or tickets to see Charo.
According to a study sponsored by Pfizer, how much do the citizens of Western Europe spend per year on counterfeit medicines?
- $10 billion - $15 billion
- $20 billion - $25 billion
- $30 billion - $35 billion
- $40 billion - $45 billion
In February 2010, the pharmaceutical company Pfizer sponsored a study that found that Western Europeans spend approximately 10.5 billion euros, or $14.3 billion, on counterfeit medicines every year. According to the World Customs Organization, the manufacturing, sales and transportation of these drugs adds up to an industry worth $200 billion a year. "We have more fakes than real drugs in the market," said the World Customs Organization's Christophe Zimmermann. "In 2007-2008 alone, it rose 596 percent."
In 2009, authorities raided a Chinese workshop that was manufacturing what quantity of counterfeit condoms?
- 20,000
- 200,000
- 2 million
- 2 billion
In 2009, the Times of London reported a raid on a factory in China's Hunan Province, where more than 2 million counterfeit condoms had been manufactured. The trade in these counterfeit items is not new. ZX Trading, a Brooklyn smuggling ring that specialized in counterfeit clothing, also trafficked in condom knockoffs, and when they were raided, they had more than half a million of them on hand. The two men who were selling them pleaded guilty to trafficking counterfeit goods, but in a moment of true chutzpah, the court filing claimed that these counterfeits were no big deal from a public safety perspective. "The mere fact that a product has a counterfeit brand name does not mean that it is dangerous," the filing read.
Almost 80% of counterfeit goods seized in the US in 2009 come from what country?
- China
- India
- Korea
- Thailand
According to a report from US Customs and Border Protection, 79% of counterfeit goods seized by authorities in 2009 came from China. The country that came in an extremely distant second place was India, with 9% of all counterfeit goods seized. The top item that was counterfeited in 2009 was footwear, which accounted for 38% of seized goods that infringed upon intellectual property rights.
Your score:
- The real thing
You're the genuine article and worth every penny.
CRIME INC.: COUNTERFEIT GOODS Premieres Wednesday, July 14th, 9p | 10p | 12a | 1a ET
RELATED LINKS
Counterfeiting: Many Risks and Many Victims
Slideshow - Top 10 Seized Counterfeit Goods
Visit the CRIME INC.: COUNTERFEIT GOODS website - Knockoff
Your sloppy handiwork is a dead giveaway, but the price is right.
CRIME INC.: COUNTERFEIT GOODS Premieres Wednesday, July 14th, 9p | 10p | 12a | 1a ET
RELATED LINKS
Counterfeiting: Many Risks and Many Victims
Slideshow - Top 10 Seized Counterfeit Goods
Visit the CRIME INC.: COUNTERFEIT GOODS website - Counterfeit medication
You are hazardous to anyone who ingests you.
CRIME INC.: COUNTERFEIT GOODS Premieres Wednesday, July 14th, 9p | 10p | 12a | 1a ET
RELATED LINKS
Counterfeiting: Many Risks and Many Victims
Slideshow - Top 10 Seized Counterfeit Goods
Visit the CRIME INC.: COUNTERFEIT GOODS website
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