A Fake Fashion Site for Fake-Fashion Awareness

Counterfeiting is not cool, and the International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition (IACC) will let you and your conscience know it when you browse DesignsFauxReal.com

  • Share
  • Read Later

Designer labels are hot commodities for most fashion lovers, even for those who settle for items that look like the real thing but at a lower price. The convenience of online shopping makes it even easier for you to click your way to purchasing that Kate Spade handbag—albeit, fake—that you’ve had your eye on. We’ve heard DesignsFauxReal.com has great deals.

Psych! Counterfeiting is not cool, and the International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition (IACC) will let you and your conscience know it when you browse DesignsFauxReal.com. It’s set up as a luxury e-commerce site, with featured brand-name items such as Lucky, True Religion, and Juicy Couture, and eye-catching ads with words like “clearance,” “complimentary” and “act now.” But if you look closely, the joke’s on you: the site’s a fake. It’s advertising “free identity theft,” not a Tiffany & Co. ring, “with every purchase,” and “50% off your life savings,” not that Lacoste watch, “when you give your credit card to counterfeit sites like this one.” If you somehow miss the red flags, enter your credit card information and click “submit,” you will get a message that says, “Oops. This isn’t a real checkout. . . just another fake out. We’re here to make sure you aren’t handing over your credit card info to hardened criminals. You’re welcome.” Feeling duped and looking for answers? If you go to any of the “About Us,” “FAQ” or “Learn More” tabs, each one leads you to the IACC homepage.

Counterfeiting is a multibillion-dollar business that continues to grow, to the detriment of the government (less tax dollars), society (less jobs and more funding of criminal activity) and reputable brands. At the request of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Luxury Design Council, DesignsFauxReal.com became the creative brainchild of Neil Kraft, the founder of KraftWorks, a communications company that specializes in advertising and activating brands. Kraft told Women’s Wear Daily that the fake fashion site “is made to both scare and amuse people,” and it will replace sites that get removed for selling fake merchandise.

Let this be a lesson to all “fakes” shoppers out there. Save your money for the real deal instead of risking your credit card information and life savings to a phony.

MORE: All-TIME 100 Fashion Icons