3.1 Million Defective and Illegal Imported Products Detected in the First Half of This Year

In the first half of this year, 3.1 million defective or illegal imported products were detected by customs authorities.

The Korea Customs Service announced on the 16th that it achieved these results by conducting intensive inspections on products closely related to daily life. The main types of violations detected during these inspections included: false or missing country-of-origin labeling, with about 1.7 million items involved in more than 2,300 cases; violations of import requirements, with about 1.33 million items in over 580 cases; and intellectual property rights infringements, with about 57,000 items in roughly 150 cases.

Country-of-origin violations included numerous cases where clothing made in China was falsely labeled as made in Korea, or both Korean and Chinese origins were indicated simultaneously, thereby violating labeling regulations.

Children's toy product found to have falsely stated KC certification information. Provided by Korea Customs Service

Violations of import requirements mainly involved cases where products subject to KC certification either falsely stated certification numbers to evade the requirement or were falsely declared as items not subject to import requirements.

Intellectual property rights infringements included cases where logos of luxury brands were attached to the upper part of Chinese-made shoes (sandals), and then covered with opaque fabric to evade customs inspection. These cases were detected during customs enforcement.

The Korea Customs Service selects 700 items closely related to public health and safety?such as health foods, clothing, and children's toys?and designates them as "products closely related to daily life," conducting intensive inspections on them each year.

A Korea Customs Service official stated, "If cases detected during intensive inspections, such as false country-of-origin labeling or evasion of import certification, are found to be clear violations of the law, we will respond strictly, including filing criminal charges." The official added, "The Korea Customs Service will continue to strengthen import inspections of products closely related to daily life to ensure public safety."