CBIC Chief urges businesses to share intel on counterfeit goods

New Delhi: Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) Chairman Vivek Chaturvedi on Thursday urged businesses to share information on counterfeit goods with enforcement agencies, saying closer cooperation could help identify suspicious consignments and emerging smuggling networks.

Speaking at FICCI-CASCADE’s MASCRADE 2026 event, Chaturvedi said businesses possess valuable intelligence about their products, distribution networks and market patterns that could strengthen enforcement.

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“Greater information sharing within the industry and enforcement agencies such as the customs can help in the identification of suspicious consignments, emerging routes and new modus operandi,” he said.

Counterfeits pose risks beyond business losses

Chaturvedi said counterfeit cigarettes, cosmetics, medicines and other products pose serious health and safety risks. He also warned that proceeds from their sale are often used to fund organised crime and terrorism, calling for greater consumer awareness.

Counterfeit goods span toys, electronics, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, with products reaching consumers without required quality checks. Their impact extends beyond losses to legitimate brand owners, he said.

He added that businesses face unfair competition from cheaper, duty-evaded counterfeit products and grey-market goods. The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) and Customs have made significant seizures of counterfeit goods in recent years, he said.

Customs expands technology-led enforcement

CBIC is strengthening its use of non-intrusive inspection technologies, data analytics, risk management systems, automated targeting and intelligence-led interventions to identify high-risk consignments more precisely, Chaturvedi said.

The aim is to disrupt illicit supply chains while allowing legitimate trade to move with minimal intervention.

Customs inspections, he said, are intended to make lawful commerce faster, safer and more predictable—not slow it down.

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Smuggling methods evolve

Chaturvedi said illicit operators increasingly exploit legitimate logistics infrastructure to build parallel supply chains.

Traditional concealment is now being supplemented by misdeclaration, layered supply chains and misuse of trade channels, courier services and e-commerce networks, alongside digital communications and payments.

“Our objective is to disrupt the illicit supply chains,” he said.

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