Industrial/Economic Espionage and Counterfeit Hovercraft

A 2007 investigation by Consumer Reports revealed a proliferation of counterfeit goods and - unlike fake designer handbags and knockoffs of expensive wristwatches - the latest counterfeit products threaten the health and safety of consumers on a global basis. These goods include medications, electrical equipment, tools, auto parts, aircraft parts … and recreational, commercial and rescue hovercraft.

A report from the International Intellectual Property Institute, Counterfeit Goods and the Public's Health and Safety, states “Counterfeit goods are not only an intellectual property legal problem, but also a very real public health problem. Reported cases if injury and death around the world have established that counterfeit goods are a very real global health concern … People are being injured and sickened.”

The bottom line of a business may take second place to the health and safety of consumers, but the economic losses attributable to counterfeiting are enormous. In the U.S. alone, theft of trade secrets and counterfeit products cost businesses $1.2 trillion per year and that figure is on the rise.

The FBI states that the Cold War is not over; it has merely taken on a different form - Economic War - and economic espionage has been designated as the FBI's number two priority, second only to terrorism.

Counterfeit Products in the Hovercraft Industry

This Economic War and public safety hazard is affecting the hovercraft industry. Of great concern is the fact that hovercraft are increasingly utilized in rescue operations, and counterfeit rescue hovercraft pose a serious threat to the lives of first responders and to the lives of those they are tasked to save.

To address this threat, the World Hovercraft Organization offers the Hovercraft Ripoff Report to alert consumers and manufacturers to counterfeit hovercraft on the market, and to theft of trade secrets, espionage, plagiarism and other unlawful practices in our industry.

To report an offense, or to comment on an incident in the Hovercraft Ripoff Report, please email Office@WorldHovercraft.org

Go to the Hovercraft Ripoff Report