A Look at Google’s Search Counterfeit Goods Policy - International Trademark Association

Note: This is part of our ongoing series to update brand owners on online service providers’ efforts to curb counterfeiting and represents our collaborative initiatives to fight the proliferation of counterfeit goods online and elsewhere.

Google recently announced a new anticounterfeiting policy that allows for the removal of web pages selling counterfeit goods from Google search results.

To initiate the removal process, brand owners or their authorized agents must submit a complaint to remove a specific web page selling counterfeit goods from Google search results. After deleting the web page from search results, Google also uses a ranking demotion signal to reduce the visibility of frequent offenders in searches.

Website owners will have the chance to submit an appeal if they believe their web page has been incorrectly removed. In an effort to remain transparent, Google will also send a copy of each legal notice to the Lumen project, a database that collects and analyzes legal complaints. After removing certain personal information, the Lumen database will publish these notices.

For more information on Google’s policies for removing content, please visit its support pages.

Although every effort has been made to verify the accuracy of this article, readers are urged to check independently on matters of specific concern or interest.