Copyright Alliance Offers Tips on Avoiding Buying Counterfeit, Pirated Products

The Copyright Alliance urged consumers to exercise caution to avoid buying products that contain counterfeit or pirated content. “In addition to inadvertently purchasing a dud gift for someone special, those who fail to heed these warnings may find that they receive unwanted ‘gifts’ of their own -- such as malware, identity theft or stolen credit cards,” CEO Keith Kupferschmid said in a Thursday news release. Consumers should always be aware that “if a product price seems too good to be true, it probably is,” the alliance said. “Be especially careful about extreme bargains on software, music, movies and video games.” The group also suggested consumers buy products only from secure websites, review product packaging for glaring errors as a way of identifying counterfeit products and consult guides on legitimate online retailers.