Online shopping giant's battle against fake lubricant retailers is working.
Cloud Sword, a campaign launched by the two-year old alliance between e-commerce giant Alibaba and Zhejiang Public Security Bureau, has identified some 100m yuan ($14.5m) worth of fake lubricants being shipped into China.
Real or fake? Image: BobIsTheOilGuy |
The initiative has used 'big data' - analysis of online traffic and consumer behaviour data on an industrial scale - along with offline action to track down sellers of fake motor lubricants from Malaysia, leading to the arrest of 11 suspects.
Counterfeit Mobil, Shell and Castrol products were discovered for sale through online shopping platforms.
50,000 barrels of fake lubricant were discovered at warehouses in Guangzhou, Guangdong province and Yiwu, a city in Zhejiang province. Listing the case as the most important in 2016, the General Administration of Customs claimed it was the first time someone from the Chinese mainland had been caught selling online fake products manufactured overseas.
The falsely branded motor oil did, in fact, meet Chinese standards. But customs officials are warning that some formulas and additives may not match the true brands.
The information Alibaba continues to provide is passed on to the Ministry of Public Security's International Cooperation Department, which has been asked to work with the Malaysia government to investigate the Malaysian source of the fake lubricants.