With the holiday shopping season in full swing, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police wants to help consumers make wise, safe purchases by offering tips for identifying counterfeit goods.

"Counterfeit products are a major health and safety concern," says Superintendent Ken Hansen, an RCMP counterfeiting expert. "These illegitimate products often involve organized crime networks that manufacture and distribute poor quality products that don't meet industry standards designed to protect you."

Although counterfeit products are commonly thought to be bogus designer goods or illegally copied music, consumers should be aware that counterfeiters also manufacture unsafe toys, electrical products posing fire hazards, exploding batteries, even fake medications.

How do you know if you are buying a counterfeit product? It isn't easy even to the trained eye, however, there are key indicators to watch for:

• Price: The price is much lower than average. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.
• Poor spelling: Look for spelling mistakes on packaging, products, and labels.
• Appearance: The package or product appears shoddy.
• Cheap production: Check the weight and feel of the product and compare. Counterfeit items are often lighter and flimsy.
• Brand names: Be cautious of products (particularly electrical products) that have no brand name

For more information on counterfeit products, visit the RCMP Intellectual Property Crime Website at: www.rcmp.ca/fio/intellectual_e.htm.