Amazon and Alibaba are teaming up with ICE to take down coronavirus counterfeiters

Amazon.
(Image credit: DENIS CHARLET/AFP via Getty Images)

The demand for coronavirus protective equipment like N95 masks far outweighs domestic production capacity in the U.S. during the pandemic, which means that counterfeiters have found an opening to sell subpar materials that pose "a serious concern to the American public," officials say.

Immigrations and Customs Enforcement said it has identified more than 19,000 suspect COVID-19-related domain names, seized nearly 500 shipments of unauthorized products, and opened 315 investigations into people allegedly selling or shipping the goods, 11 of which have resulted in arrests, per The Wall Street Journal.

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Tim O'Donnell

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.