Fake Shops and Rogue Websites

Brand protection safeguards your intellectual property, reputation, and customers from threats such as fake shops, counterfeit goods, and fraudulent online retailers. Effective brand protection strategies cover online brand protection, brand protection software, domain monitoring, and marketplace monitoring.

Counterfeits and fake products appear on both small fraudulent sites and major platforms. Criminals use Amazon monitoring, TikTok shop scams, and Facebook marketplace monitor loopholes to sell illegal goods. Without strong monitoring, fake websites, fake domains, and website spoofing can quickly damage consumer trust and reduce revenue. Businesses in every sector, from fashion to pharmaceuticals, need a complete brand protection strategy to stop these threats.

Fake shops are fraudulent websites or fraudulent online retailers that copy a brand’s products, trademarks, and imagery to deceive customers. Some operate as single-brand sites, while others act as grey markets or multi-brand marketplaces selling fake products. Criminals often use website spoofing or fake domains to appear authentic. Many design scams to avoid detection by using country-specific IP blocking or removing brand names from the domain.

These fake shops also appear on established platforms. Businesses need Amazon monitoring, marketplace monitoring, and social media impersonation protection as part of their brand protection software. Companies must act quickly to report counterfeit goods and carry out reporting counterfeit merchandise to shut down these operations before they cause serious damage.

To prevent ecommerce fraud, brands must monitor and enforce continuously. Companies should use online brand protection tools that include ecommerce fraud prevention, domain monitoring, and fraud online purchase detection. A strong programme targets fake shops, fake websites, and fake products across the entire digital environment, from social media impersonation to TikTok shop scams.

With brand protection UK expertise or global resources, businesses can remove fraudulent online retailers, disrupt grey markets, and delete counterfeit listings from marketplaces. The goal is to stop counterfeit sales and prevent them from returning. Partnering with a provider that delivers advanced brand protection software ensures ongoing defence, protects ecommerce growth, and keeps customer trust intact.

EBRAND’s ARGOS platform helps businesses protect themselves online. Delivering a suite of Online Brand Protection research tools and action channels, supported by teams of lawyers and analysts, ARGOS provides an intuitive, effective Online Brand Protection solution.

Spotting a spot a fake online store is harder than ever, and with the rise of AI, it’s only getting harder. Cybercriminals use sophisticated tactics, from AI-generated content to fake social media promotions, to fool shoppers and undermine legitimate brands. Here’s how to tell if an online store is legit, whether you’re a consumer or a business.

Consumers & Small Businesses: How to Know if an Online Store is Legit

1. Check the Domain & URL

   • Look for misspellings, unusual extensions (e.g., .shop instead of .com), or extra characters.

2. Search for Reviews & Complaints

   • Check Trustpilot, Sitejabber, or the Better Business Bureau (BBB) for customer feedback.

   • Google the store name + “scam” to see if others have reported issues.

3. Verify Contact & Payment Methods

   • Legitimate stores provide clear contact details (email, phone, address). Test them.

   • Avoid sites that only accept wire transfers or cryptocurrency. 

4. Use Fake Shop Finder Tools

   • Scamadviser – Analyzes website trust scores.

   • Global Anti-Scam Organisation – Lists known fraudulent stores.

SMEs & Enterprises: How to Know if a Shopping Website is Legit

Manual checks aren’t enough for businesses facing large-scale impersonation. Fake shops steal revenue, damage reputations, and require a strategic approach:

1. Monitor for Infringements

   • Use AI-powered tools to scan search engines, social media, and marketplaces for fake stores.

2. Gather Evidence for Takedowns

   • Track stolen branding, counterfeit listings, and scam domains.

   • Document links to payment processors and social media accounts used in fraud.

3. Partner with Brand Protection Experts

   • Solutions like EBRAND’s Online Brand Protection automate detection, monitoring, and takedowns at scale.

The Best Way to Protect Your Business?

Get a free fake shop audit and discover how many fraudulent stores are exploiting your brand right now. Start your audit today.

Fake shops are evolving, but with the right tools, you can fight back, whether you’re a shopper or a business. Stay vigilant and take action to turn the tide on fake online stores.

EBRAND delivers the best Online Brand Protection Solution.

EBRAND’s Online Brand Protection solution delivers the most comprehensive, effective, and scalable service on the market. It helps businesses detect fake stores, remove counterfeits, monitor brand abuse, and protect their digital assets across every major online channel.

At the centre of the solution is ARGOS, our proprietary detection and enforcement platform. ARGOS uses AI-powered search technology to scan websites, ecommerce marketplaces, social media platforms, app stores, and the dark web. It identifies threats in real time, filters infringing results, and prioritises them based on risk. You gain access to detailed insights across all major regions, including the US, EU, UK, Russia, China, and other high-risk markets.

In addition to ARGOS, EBRAND offers DeepVision OCR, a cutting-edge tool that scans for counterfeit listings using image recognition and optical character recognition. This allows us to detect listings that copy your logos, product images, or marketing materials, even when infringers avoid using brand names directly.

Unlike one-size-fits-all tools, EBRAND delivers dedicated support from global experts who tailor each programme to your business. Our advisors work closely with your team to optimise detection settings, track counterfeit activity, and execute effective takedowns. This hands-on support ensures the technology fits your strategy and delivers measurable value.

EBRAND also strengthens your broader brand protection posture through integration with Corporate Domain Management and Digital Risk Protection services. This allows your business to protect its brand from phishing, domain abuse, and wider digital threats, all from a single provider.

Our platform helps businesses curb the grey market, tackle trademark infringements, control distribution networks, and reclaim lost revenue. By combining automated monitoring, expert analysis, and effective enforcement, EBRAND helps global brands shut down fake shops, remove counterfeits, and reinforce their digital presence.

To see how your brand performs across the web, get a free brand protection audit from EBRAND and take the first step towards a stronger, safer online footprint.