U.S. Customs and Border Protection processes over 278 million cargo and parcel shipments from overseas each year. While the majority of these contain legal goods, a small percentage contain counterfeit items. Customs and border officers seized and destroyed some 34,143 shipments containing counterfeit items in the 2017 fiscal year. Thousands more shipments of counterfeit goods likely went undetected and made it into the United States.
The CBP seized 8.2 percent more shipments of counterfeit goods in 2017 compared to the year before, when it seized 31,560 shipments. However, the value of the counterfeit items seized was considerably less, dropping from $1.38 billion in 2016 to $1.21 billion in 2017.
Forgers from across the globe send falsified goods to the United States to undercut prices set by the companies that actually own the intellectual property rights of the items. Knockoff electronics, accessories, and clothing rake in millions of dollars each year.
