How to Avoid Counterfeit Books | What Details to Look Out For

Are you an Amazon seller wondering how to identify counterfeit books? Any seller who has offered books online for any period of time probably knows about the rampant amount of counterfeit books out there. If you’re not getting your inventory from a publisher, knowing how to avoid counterfeit books is part of your job as a seller! 

Counterfeit books are illegally produced and put up for sale in various marketplaces by third-party sellers. What makes them counterfeit is that their unauthorized production infringes on the copyright-protected work that comprises the book. 

The issue of counterfeit books is no small thing. It’s a major problem that affects many folks involved with both the buying and selling of books on Amazon. Financially, counterfeit books harm authors and publishers, too. So, for example, if 54 pirated copies of a Critical Race Theory textbook gets sold on Amazon, the publisher loses out on earnings, the author’s reputation is tarnished, and the customer receives a fake, subpar product. Counterfeit books with text that’s unreadable, shoddy paper, pages missing etc. doesn’t benefit anyone but the pirater! 

What If I’m Just a Book Reseller on Amazon?

Even if you’re simply a book reseller on Amazon, you still need to beware of counterfeit books. As we noted above, counterfeit books are illegal! If you sell a pirated book, whether you do so knowingly or not, you are then engaging in copyright infringement. That could lead to you getting sued by the copyright owner. If you are sued, you could have to shell out statutory damages for the infringement, which could add up to $750 to $30,000 for each work. What happens in the event that the work’s owner can prove that the infringement was willful? In that case, the infringer will be responsible to pay up to $150,000 for each work infringed on, as well as legal fees. Even without considering the moral side of counterfeiting, on a purely financial basis selling pirated copies of books doesn’t really pay! 

How to Identify Counterfeit Books…

How to avoid counterfeit books? There are a few specific indicators you can use to check the authenticity of any book. Lots of counterfeit books share similar tells. Here’s what they are: 

If a book has bad print quality that can indicate it’s counterfeit. When a pirated copy is produced, the original scan of the book can result in blurriness of the text or images, missing pages, overlapping text, misprints, and more. 

The low-quality binding of a book can suggest counterfeiting. Sometimes the glue will be of varying color, possess an odor, or be uneven. You might see that the spine is oddly flat or bent, as well. 

When a book has second-rate paper – thin pages that are poorly cut with uneven dimensions.

If the book has a low-grade cover quality, that could mean it’s counterfeit. A huge tell is when the title of the book or the name of the author is off-center. Additionally, if the cover is obviously low quality, has pixelated images, a non-uniform color scheme, or blurred writing – these can be signs of counterfeiting. 

Check the barcode! The barcode on a pirated book might be blurry or have a little bit of color in it. A normal, original barcode will be clearly black-and-white and have a sharp, crisp appearance. 

If the book is missing a copyright page or flyleaves, it might be counterfeit! 

Check to see if the headband color or patterns are off, because that is common with pirated books. 

Examine the ISBN! If the title, edition, and other information lines up, but differs from the original, it could be counterfeit. Unless it’s marked as an instructor or international edition/version. There are also many trusted sites available online where you can enter the ISBN of a book and it will tell you if it’s counterfeit. 

Avoid Infringement Lawsuits, If Possible…

Knowing how to identify counterfeit books is definitely an asset if you’re selling books on Amazon. Selling a counterfeit book can end up with a lawsuit. Any Amazon seller who has a lawsuit filed against them will have their selling account frozen! If and/or when that happens, you most likely will be barred from accessing the funds in your account. The buying and selling of popular textbooks, for example, is where you should be particularly aware. If a law firm for a big textbook publisher sues you, it can cost you many thousands of dollars! Definitely try to avoid that situation as best you can. 

Whatever kind of books you’re selling on Amazon, you should consider the following: 

• If the book is an edition, what kind of edition is it? 
• The ISBN on the book should match what’s on the product detail page. 
• Know your source! Stock your inventory using a reputable, reliable source. 

Have you encountered legal issues with Amazon due to counterfeit books? Contact our team at Stockman & Poropat, PLLC today! We offer a free consultation. Whether you’re dealing with a restraining order, a counterfeit claim, or a lawsuit, we can help! 

Up next we will be discussing Filing Arbitration Against Amazon.