About a month ago, we wrote about fakes and how Alibaba founder Jack Ma came under fire for saying that fakes are sometimes better from the original—a statement he has since qualified by saying his online portal has “zero tolerance” for fakes. But it’s obvious to many that Ma was trying to justify the reason why some people patronize knockoffs that end up getting sold in his site.
People can debate to death the chicken-and-egg argument that fakes wouldn’t proliferate if people did not patronize them and vice versa, but there is no denying that counterfeit products are bad for business—legit business, that is. One of the biggest victims of counterfeiting is the movie industry, what with fake DVDs openly sold primarily in mini-malls and marketplaces and cheaply, too—P20-P25 compared to P250 up to P375 for the newest releases. No wonder even ex-government officials buy them, like BS Aquino political adviser Ronald Llamas who was caught buying fake DVDs by the dozens at Circle C Mall in Quezon City. Typically, the ex-president gave a preposterous alibi for his friend, saying Llamas was just “passing by.” Oh sure—he was so disinterested that he looked so engrossed in looking through the fakes.
But we digress. A few days ago, the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry sounded off about the detrimental effects of counterfeit products to business and ultimately, the economy. Aside from the health risks that counterfeit products pose (fake rice, fake medicines, fake milk, etc.), it also threatens the employment of Filipinos and turns off foreign investors from coming in. As pointed out by PCCI intellectual property committee chairman Jesus Varela, pirated products are bad for industries, brands, consumers and the government obviously because of lost tax revenues.
Two weeks ago, people were treated to the spectacle of an armored personnel vehicle crunching confiscated fake branded eyewear and pirated DVDs in a ceremonial destruction at Camp Crame organized by the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines and the National Committee on Intellectual Property Rights. According to authorities, an estimated P2.8 billion worth of goods was confiscated from January to June this year, with products ranging from DVDs to watches to fake branded bags.
And now—even Pokemon Go is being faked! According to a report by a software security firm, an app going by the name Pokemon Go Ultimate has infiltrated the Google Play store. Pokemon Go is that hugely popular augmented reality game for iOS and Android gadgets where a player has to hunt for Pokemon by walking around certain directions and distances to look for eggs.
The Pokemon Go app makes use of GPS (Global Positioning System) to put the creatures in real landmarks through the Google Maps, and a player can find these virtual creatures through the use of the gadget. A lot of people are reportedly using the game to shed off extra pounds with al the walking around that has to be done.
Pokemon Go Ultimate, however, is nothing but a malicious app that is installed as “PI Network,” which then freezes the phone or gadget—and the only way the phone can be restarted is by removing the battery. A report by Fortune says the malicious app would still be lurking inside, wreaking havoc on the system by generating fake ad clicks. Aside from Pokemon Go Ultimate, other fake apps include Install Pokemongo, Guide & Cheats for Pokemon Go and other copycats. So before you get so excited, make sure that what you are installing is Pokemon Go—the real deal, not the fake.
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