Anti-Counterfeiting

Anti counterfeiting countermeasures can be included in the product itself or can be added on during the product packaging.   One portion of the anti counterfeiting countermeasure can be considered as the “lock” and this is added onto the product or its packaging.  The other portion of anti counterfeiting countermeasure can be considered as the “key”.  This is the tool which  the brand owner uses to detect the lock on original product or packaging.  For example, a holographic image on packaging can be considered an anti counterfeiting lock, while the eye of a custom official, trained to look for specific holographic images, can, in this case, be considered the anti counterfeiting key. 

What’s the best anti counterfeiting solution?  It depends!   Kodak brand protection experts help brand owners find the optimal solution, one that strikes a cost-effective balance between anti counterfeiting solution requirements for product (or “lock” side) and for verification (or “key” side).

Anti counterfeiting technologies can take several forms including:

• Overt solutions, which are verifiable without any tools
• Semi-covert solutions, which are verifiable with non-specialized tools, such as UV flashlights
• Covert solutions, verifiable with specialized tools in the field
• Forensic solutions, which require laboratory analysis for authentication 

Each class of anti counterfeiting technology has strengths and weaknesses.  Overt solutions, like holograms, can be verified by anyone who knows what to look for, but often can add additional process steps when applied to products and packaging.  Additionally, the ease of verification that comes with an overt solution makes overt solutions easy targets for counterfeiters.  At the other end of the spectrum, a forensic solution, such as a laboratory-based compositional analysis of some existing packaging component, can be inexpensive to deploy on billions of packages, but time consuming and relatively expensive when it comes to the verification step.

Kodak has applied its years of experience in materials and imaging science to develop a set of anti counterfeiting countermeasures that define a new category, ultracovert.  Ultracovert anti counterfeiting solutions embody the benefits of forensic solutions and of covert solutions.  Like forensic options, ultra-covert solutions are economically deployed on products and packaging, even at high volume; drop easily into existing  production processes; and are highly secure and hard to replicate.  At the same time, ultra-covert solutions share the easy-to-use field verification benefits of covert anti counterfeiting solutions. 

Kodak believes a layered approach to anti counterfeiting is the most effective and economical way to build a high performance solution.  The total anti counterfeiting security technology package must be chosen to meet the needs, capabilities, technical and cost requirements of the brand owner.  Layering of anti counterfeiting components, addresses authentication needs throughout the product supply chain and provides viable pathways for future anti counterfeiting technology improvement and migration.

Kodak Security Solutions brand protection product portfolio offers a wide range of choices when building your brand protection strategy.   Kodak’s anti counterfeiting countermeasures include marker/reader and marker/magnifier based systems, hidden marks encoded in artwork and overt color shift options, attainable with and without specialty inks.  

All of these brand protection solutions embody  Kodak’s value proposition for anti counterfeiting countermeasures:  drop-in easy, cost-effective, high security brand protection with easy field verification. 

Kodak finds there are two common barriers to anti counterfeiting action for brand owners when confronted with issues stemming from black markets.   First, how does a brand owner choose the right anti counterfeiting technology from the vast array of products and solutions available from the hundreds of different primary and secondary security technology providers?  Second, how does the brand owner build an effective brand protection strategy around the anti counterfeiting technology tool?   

Kodak’s experience in brand protection includes helping clients evaluate and benchmark their current exposure to the risks arising from black markets and grey markets, as well as helping brand owners design and implement monitoring and enforcement strategies which optimally leverage their anti counterfeiting and grey market countermeasures.   

Kodak’s approach to a high performance brand protection strategy includes five steps: