The True Cost of E-commerce Infringement on US Marketplaces

The E-commerce industry is experiencing a digital transformation in counterfeiting, and this has fundamentally changed how we shop by connecting 2.7 billion global buyers to a digital marketplace that generates over $1.17 trillion annually. 

But this borderless retail environment has also unleashed unprecedented economic potential for bad actors. For US brands, e-commerce infringement is no longer just a legal nuisance - it is a massive commercial risk that directly translates to lost sales and eroded consumer trust.

In our recent webinar, Mike Sweeney, VP of Brand Protection at Corsearch, put the sheer scale of the problem into perspective:‍

"The practice of counterfeiting has undergone a dramatic transformation - what once took place in brick-and-mortar style retail locations, back alley sales, suitcases full of cheap fakes and so on, now thrives in the borderless, decentralized backcountry of the internet."

^{Mike Sweeney - VP of Brand Protection at Corsearch}

Quantifying a "Colossal Problem"

Measuring the exact size of the counterfeiting problem online can feel like "trying to nail jelly to the wall," as Sweeney notes, due to the moving targets on digital platforms. 

By looking at the objective published data we get a picture sheer size of the current landscape:

• Global reach: Out of a global population of approximately 8.5 billion people, an estimated 63% now use the internet.
  
  
• Massive sales volumes: In 2024, e-commerce sales across Europe alone were valued at over €831 billion.
  
  
• The Counterfeit Economy: Trade in counterfeit goods is now estimated by the OECD to be $467 billion USD. That accounts for roughly 3% of global trade - a figure Sweeney points out is "the equivalent to the entire economy of Ireland." Worse, this number is predicted to rise to 5% by 2030.

‍"Immediately, you can see that counterfeiting is simply a colossal problem for brands and intellectual property owners."

^{Mike Sweeney - VP of Brand Protection at Corsearch}

The Dominance of US Marketplaces

While digital commerce is a global offering - with China pioneering an incredibly integrated "Super App" ecosystem - US marketplaces remain a primary target for bad actors. 

Major e-commerce platforms have become household names, and they draw immense traffic due to their convenience and the "flywheel effect," where low prices and high selection continuously attract more sellers and buyers.

To illustrate this, Sweeney highlighted that in January 2026 alone, one of the most well known e-commerce platforms saw an estimated 2.6 billion unique visitors. Crucially, roughly 90% of that traffic comes directly from consumers located in the United States.

Counterfeiters, often operating from overseas jurisdictions like China where intellectual property regimes may be less stringent, recognize these traffic volumes. 

They actively exploit the open nature of these global platforms, placing cheap, inauthentic goods directly in the path of US consumers.

The Hidden Costs for Brands

When counterfeiters infiltrate these platforms, the damage to brands is severe. 

Consumers are presented with unlawful products, leaving them genuinely confused and disappointed after purchase - and sometimes, at risk of being exposed to unsafe materials.

But the most concerning issue is the direct financial hit. "Brands very often underestimate... the extent to which they are losing sales" Sweeney shared. When an infringer undercuts a brand on a marketplace, the brand doesn't just lose a single transaction; they suffer reputational damage, resource drain on their internal teams, and a direct loss of market share.

To survive in today's digital economy, brands must move beyond surface-level monitoring. 

Understanding the scale of the threat is step one; taking strategic, data-driven action is step two.

Speak to Corsearch today to find out how we protect the world’s most valuable brands.