Underwriters Laboratories Inc. and 3M Corp. each recently announced new efforts aimed at combating counterfeit products.

Underwriters Laboratories has renewed its commitment to a zero-tolerance policy for goods bearing counterfeit UL marks.

The independent, not-for-profit product safety certification organization has been testing products for more than 100 years. The group estimates that 20 billion UL marks appear on electrical products each year.

“[Our] zero-tolerance policy for counterfeiting led UL to establish an aggressive program that helps port authorities recognize legitimate UL marks, so that we can help prevent [counterfeit] goods from entering the marketplace and reaching consumers,” said Brian Monks, vice president of anti-counterfeiting operations for UL.

The cost of product counterfeiting is estimated to be as much as 7 percent of total world trade—or roughly $500 billion dollars, Monk estimated.

UL's anti-counterfeiting program has three goals: to protect the safety of consumers around the world from the hazards of counterfeit electrical products; to preserve the integrity of UL's family of marks; and to provide additional value to manufacturers that have invested the time and resources to meet UL's safety standards.

UL works in partnership with U.S. Customs officials and other local, federal and international law enforcement agencies to protect its certification marks. UL is directly involved in identifying goods that bear counterfeit marks.

Since 1995, UL estimates it has assisted with more than 1,300 seizures of counterfeit products at entry ports. Examples of potential counterfeit products are often high-volume, low-cost items such as extension cords and power strips.

UL's Web site, www.ul.com/ace, contains information about spotting counterfeit items as well as how companies can get more involved.

In another anti-counterfeiting move, 3M announced the launch of a new format for its 3M Confirm authentication product line, which uses floating image technology to offer protection against counterfeiting and tampering. First introduced in April 2006, 3M Confirm features an optically variable device that appears to “float” above or “sink” below the surface of a label and then disappear as the viewing angle changes. Movement of the image is easy to detect with the human eye, enabling quick authentication that helps verify that both the label and product are genuine.

The labeling format has been widely adopted in industries featuring products that are prone to counterfeiting, such as electronics, automotive parts and pharmaceuticals.

“The additional functionality of the new format allows manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers to use just one label for authentication, bar codes, tracking and other additional security features,” said Bill Markovitz, marketing development manager, 3M Security Systems Division.