The fake sites copying your brand

Updated on August 5, 2026 · LegalBrandGuard

Quick answer

A fake site reproduces a brand’s identity — name, logo, photographs, copy — to collect orders it will never deliver. These sites are not one-off efforts: they are mass-produced by organized networks, at a rate of several hundred per server.

What a fake site is, and what it isn’t

The term covers very different situations that don’t call for the same response. Telling them apart avoids taking action against a perfectly legitimate third party.

Situation	Characteristic	Appropriate response
Fake storefront	Copies the brand’s identity, has no relationship with it, doesn’t deliver	Notice to the technical intermediaries
Unauthorized reseller	Sells genuine products without a distribution agreement	Commercial matter, not a takedown
News article or comparison site	References the brand for informational purposes	None — lawful use
Similar-looking unrelated domain	Name is close by coincidence, distinct business	None — verify before acting

That last row deserves attention. A domain with a spelling close to your brand may belong to a company with no connection to you whatsoever. Sending it a cease-and- desist letter exposes you to risk without gaining you anything.

Why your brand is targeted

The targeting is nothing personal: it is automated. The criteria that make a good target are mechanical — enough recognition that people search for the brand, a product photo catalog that can be lifted, and prices that make a 70% discount look credible.

Mid-sized brands are especially exposed: well known enough to generate traffic, rarely equipped with a legal team that monitors for this.

What their existence costs you

The damage isn’t primarily legal. You don’t operate the site and your liability isn’t engaged. What’s harmed lies elsewhere.

Trust. The scammed customer believes they bought from you. It’s your customer service they call, and your name they cite in their review.
Your customers’ data. Contact and payment details are collected under your identity, and sometimes reused.
Your visibility. These sites buy ads and work their search rankings on your brand name.

Go further

How to recognize a fake site impersonating your brand
The six technical signals that separate a fake storefront from a legitimate reseller — checkable in minutes, with no paid tool.
BogusBazaar: anatomy of a fake-storefront network
The network documented by Security Research Labs has launched over 75,000 fraudulent storefronts. Understanding how it operates explains why a shut-down domain gets replaced immediately.

Once the fake site is identified, the next step plays out with the technical intermediaries: getting a fake site taken down.

Frequently asked questions

Why is my brand being targeted when it’s a modest one?+

Because targeting isn't manual. These networks industrialize the creation of storefronts and select brands on automatable criteria: enough recognition to generate searches, a usable product photo catalog, and prices that make a credible discount plausible. A coherent niche brand is a convenient target.

Am I liable if a customer gets scammed on a fake site?+

Legally, no: you don't operate the site. In practice, the customer calls you, blames you for an order that never arrived, and leaves a negative review under your name. The damage is commercial and reputational before it is legal.

Do these fake sites actually sell counterfeit products?+

Most often, they deliver nothing at all. The model relies on taking payment without shipping, and sometimes on fraudulently reusing the payment data collected. It's a scam combined with a brand infringement, not merely counterfeiting.

How many fake sites can target the same brand?+

Several at once, and on a recurring basis. For a French outdoor gear brand we track, we identified four active domains and four others already taken down that had displayed the brand in the past, over a three-year period.

Sources

BogusBazaar : a criminal network of webshop fraudsters — Security Research Labs