Counterfeiting, Italy blocks 80% of fakes seized in the EU market

Eight out of ten counterfeit articles, among those seized in the internal market of the Union, are stopped in Italy. In 2025, the Italian authorities blocked 80.2% of the pieces intercepted by the police and supervisory authorities of the countries that transmitted the data, approximately 140 million out of 175.

These correspond to 73.9% of the estimated value, approximately 3.4 billion out of 4.55. Followed at a distance by France (7%), the Netherlands (5.4%) and Spain (4.2%): together with Italy, the four states "dominated" the volumes and value of seizures, according to the report, covering almost 97% of the items.

This is the data that emerges from the annual report of the European Commission and Euipo on the protection of intellectual property, which records the highest level ever. In the domestic market, the 175 million pieces mark an increase of 71% over 2024 and exceed the 2023 record by 27%.

Adding together customs, police and supervisory authorities, the items intercepted are over 196 million, for 6.3 billion euros. In 2024 they were 112 million for 3.8 billion, in 2023, the year of the previous peak, 152 million.

By type, in the domestic market the first place goes for the second year in a row to CDs and DVDs, a category that includes music, films, TV series box sets, retro video games and software. The category accounts for 32.8% of seizures, down from 40% in 2024. Toys follow with 19.5% and, in third place, labels and tags, which have risen from 2.1% to 13.4%. They are assembly materials which, when applied to anonymous goods, transform them into a fake ready for sale.