AI-based online brand protection company Wigofair said on Tuesday it has strengthened its database of counterfeit sellers as part of its response to those exploiting Coupang’s Item Winner structure.

When different sellers offer the same product, Coupang merges the product page into one and selects the seller with the best price and delivery conditions as the “Item Winner”, linking that seller to the purchase button.

Wigofair said the system is convenient for consumers, but unauthorized sellers may be able to reuse product images, detailed descriptions and accumulated reviews created by a brand’s authorised seller if they simply lower the price.

Wigofair said it analyzes seller information collected during monitoring through its counterfeit seller database to automatically group related sellers. If a seller is determined to be selling counterfeit goods, it responds in bulk to all grouped sellers using the same grounds for infringement.

It said the determination and subsequent response are carried out together with brands. The company said the database is also effective in cracking down on organisations that move between platforms to sell counterfeit goods because it is linked to each client’s reporting history. It added that when a seller blocked on Coupang reappears on other platforms such as Naver or 11st, it can be grouped as the same seller and identified immediately.

Wigofair CEO Jong-myeon Kim (김종면) said, “Counterfeit sellers return to the same place by changing only their names even after taking down a product.” He said, “Now is the time to crack down not on products but on sellers, and we will track counterfeit-selling organisations hiding behind names to the end to create an online distribution environment where brands and consumers can feel safe.”