Online shopping has more than doubled its share of UK retail over the past 10 years, and unsurprisingly criminals have taken full advantage of this by selling counterfeit products digitally.
Between government, law enforcement, regulators and businesses, we need to work together to share evidence and best practices, address both supply and demand, and ensure the right provisions are in place to protect consumers from criminals.
Collaboration is key to fighting IP Crime and infringement. And our work alongside online platforms is central to this preventative approach. We have continued to develop our relationship with partners like Vinted, along with other e-commerce platforms, who we work with to share best practise on effective tools and processes to detect and prevent the online sale of counterfeit goods and thereby protecting consumers and UK businesses from harm.
This month, the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) has launched ‘Second Hand, Not Second Best’ a campaign highlighting the benefits of shopping second hand, and why choosing pre-loved goods offers an affordable and sustainable alternative to buying fakes. As shoppers look to save money, it’s even more important to highlight second-hand marketplaces as a practical solution, offering consumers access to genuine, high quality products at lower cost.
In recent years, the second-hand market has grown significantly, with clear benefits:
- It provides a cost-effective alternative to fast fashion and counterfeit goods
- It supports more sustainable consumption and reduces environmental impact
- It helps ensure value remains within the legitimate economy
Second-hand is no longer niche – platforms such as Vinted, Depop, Gumtree, Preloved reach tens of millions of UK consumers. However, consumer confidence depends on trust in the quality and authenticity of items, and in the protections offered by marketplaces.
That is why we are partnering with Vinted to help strengthen trust in second-hand shopping.
Our partnership with Vinted to support second-hand shopping
Vinted is one of Europe’s leading marketplaces, enabling people to buy and sell fashion and all kinds of household items, with millions of members across the UK. Our work together is an example of how government and e-commerce platforms can collaborate to tackle counterfeiting at scale.
As a community-driven marketplace, Vinted places trust at the centre of how people buy and sell. This is essential in enabling confident trading between its members. That’s why we work closely together - combining platform expertise with government insight – to help prevent counterfeit listings, improve the quality of product information, and make it easier for users to buy and sell legitimately.
This partnership has led to IPO and Vinted to creating clear, public- facing guidance for both buyers and sellers, alongside ongoing policy engagement to ensure anti-counterfeiting measures continue to evolve in line with emerging threats
We understand why, with budgets being stretched, consumers are looking for the best bargains. Second-hand shopping offers a cost-effective option for buying legitimate, rather than buying counterfeits. The quality is better; the money is passing through legitimate businesses who are paying taxes and the items are sustainable and hold their value.
This latest guidance sits alongside our ongoing policy work with Vinted to share insight on emerging risks, exchange best practice, and support the design of systems that make it harder for criminals to operate and easier for people to shop with confidence. This supports trust in what people see online and makes it easier to choose legitimate second-hand alternatives over counterfeit goods
Working together remains essential
Behind the scenes, our policy teams work closely with e-commerce platforms as well as IP rights holders to better understand the challenges around enforcement against IP rights infringements on online marketplaces, strengthen platform tools and processes to detect and prevent the sale of counterfeit goods, and identify and promote industry best practice in the UK and internationally. Through regular engagement, we aim to make it harder for criminals to operate, and easier for consumers to shop with confidence on online marketplaces.
Alongside our efforts, we aim for this new guidance to build trust in recommerce platforms like Vinted, which combat counterfeiting, and promote second-hand shopping as a top choice for budget-conscious consumers
We encourage e‑commerce platforms, rights holders and enforcement partners to continue engaging with the IPO to share insight, strengthen safeguards and build consistent, effective approaches to tackling counterfeiting online. By collaborating early and openly, we can make it harder for criminals to operate and easier for consumers to shop with confidence.
13 comments
Comment by James Taylor posted on
I've reported around a hundred fake items and Vinted are using AI tools to reject the reports en-masse. How do we escalate this matter?
Comment by IPO Social Media Team posted on
Thank you for taking the time to comment. On response to your question about directing complaints, you may already be aware of the Vinted Dispute Resolution page, but in case not, you can find it here: https://www.vinted.com/help/1253
Comment by Billy badman posted on
I have reported loads of sellers on vinted for selling clear fakes and passing them off as real ones
All vinted do is send a messages back to me saying sorry theres nothing wrong can do then allow the fake to be sold and just inform me to block the seller
Well am sorry thats braking the law and they dont do anything about it or take responsibility
It needs shutting down and they need a big fine to make them aware to not allow this to happen
Comment by IPO Social Media Team posted on
Thank you for taking the time to share your concerns.
While we can't comment on individual cases or specific reports made to online platforms, we recognise the importance of online marketplaces responding to concerns about potentially infringing goods in a timely and effective manner.
As highlighted in the blog, our work with Vinted goes beyond this campaign. The IPO's enforcement policy team engages regularly with online platforms, including Vinted, to promote effective anti-counterfeiting measures. This includes ongoing conversations about the safeguards used to identify and address potentially infringing listings.
We welcome feedback from consumers, as it helps inform wider discussions about the challenges of tackling counterfeit goods online and highlights areas where improvements may be needed.
Thank you again for sharing your perspective.
Comment by Jane Hirst posted on
Improvements 🤣🤣🤣🤣you need to halt Vinted trading in the UK until they respond to people I have requested a SARS completely ignored
Comment by Vinted customer posted on
I’m sorry but Vinted are notorious for facilitating counterfeit items!
I received a clear fake and was forced to return it to the seller before I could have a refund, seller then just sold it on to someone else!
Vinted insist counterfeit items are returned to the sellers this is well documented on many platforms Facebook etc so then they are sold on to a customer who won’t complain, and if they do complain well the seller will ge the item back, Vinted are the last place that should be linked to this campaign!
Also their ‘verified service’ is known to be as poor as their customer service! I’m sorry but you have no idea how comical it is to see Vinted name on this 😂
Maybe do your research in groups online and also this is also the platform in the media for having live animals listed …if they couldn’t spot that before it went viral and multiple reports including a rescue centre intervening then I doubt they’ll spot a fake Gucci lol 😂
Comment by IPO Social Media Team posted on
Thank you for taking the time to share your experience and concerns.
While we can't comment on individual cases, we recognise the importance of online platforms responding to reports in a timely and effective manner, particularly where counterfeit goods are involved.
As highlighted in the blog, our work with Vinted goes beyond this campaign. The IPO's enforcement policy team engages regularly with online platforms, including Vinted, to promote effective anti-counterfeiting measures. This includes ongoing conversations about the safeguards used to identify and address potentially infringing listings.
We understand that people's experiences can shape their views of online marketplaces, and feedback from consumers plays an important role in the wider conversation about the challenges of tackling counterfeit goods online.
Thank you again for sharing your perspective.
Comment by Jane Hirst posted on
Vinted are corrupt end of! Perhaps the ICO needs to look up Vinted Sad Faces campaign on Instagram and watch the recent BBC interview. I hope they do a panorama programmes about it.
My account has been banned reason given counterfeit goods my items are genuine but clear fakes I have reported still on there 100% corrupt organised crime 100% government cover it up if they were not covering it up they would be telling Vinted to provide customer service and comply with the law
Comment by Mrs H posted on
It is ironic that there is a partnership with Vinted when Vinted is known for permitting the sale of counterfeit goods. Their process for reviewing reports is flawed. Despite Vinted stating that they do not permit the sale of counterfeit goods, when you report a listing, their AI bot automatically rejects your report. When you appeal, they either take longer than their own stipulated timeframe to review so the counterfeit goods are already sold and there is no action to take, or they reject it as it not being clear that it goes against their community guidelines. I've seen a lot of counterfeit Labubu and reported these with no action being taken against sellers - even if a seller has multiple counterfeit Labubu. Vinted is not a trusted platform for second hand goods as they do not take sufficient action against the sale of counterfeit goods.
Comment by David Mincher posted on
It might be their policy, but Vinted aren’t taking it seriously. I raised an issue with them on 18th June and it is still “under investigation”. This simply isn’t good enough.
Comment by IPO Social Media Team posted on
Thank you for your comment. We appreciate you taking the time to share your experience.
While we are unable to comment on individual cases, we recognise the importance of platforms responding to reports in a timely and effective manner.
As highlighted in the blog, our work with Vinted goes beyond this campaign. The IPO's enforcement policy team engages regularly with online platforms, including Vinted, to promote effective anti-counterfeiting measures. This includes ongoing conversations about the safeguards used to identify and address potentially infringing listings.
We welcome feedback from readers, as it helps us and our partners understand where improvements may be needed. Thank you again for bringing this to our attention.
Comment by Jane Hirst posted on
You would not print my comments which shows how you have no interest in Vinteds current issues I suggest you watch the news and look at the massive online backlash
AI BOTS take genuine items down and leave fakes up which is highly suspicious
Comment by IPO Social Media Team posted on
Thank you for taking the time to get in touch. With apologies for the delay in responding, we would like to reassure you that all comments are moderated before publication which can sometimes lead to a time lag, particularly around a holiday period.
We take reports of potential infringement seriously. As part of our ongoing work in this area we continue to engage with online platforms and provide advice and recommendations to support effective action against infringement and improve protections for consumers.
While we are unable to comment on individual cases, please channel any specific complaints via the Vinted Dispute Resolution page through the following link: https://www.vinted.com/help/1253.