How to Spot the Real from the Fake
WILLIS: Hey, you probably heard about fake purses and fake jewelry, but what about fake brake pads? It's a scary thought, but counterfeit items are everywhere. Here to help us spot the real from the fake and do keep you and your family safe is Todd Marks, he is senior editor with "Consumer Reports." Todd, great to see you again.</s>TODD MARKS, CONSUMER REPORTS: Good it see you, too.</s>WILLIS: You just finished an investigation in to this area, lots and lots of products that aren't real. What kind of categories are we talking about?</s>MARKS: Well, if they make it, they fake it and that's the sad reality. The fact of the matter is that virtually any product out there from prescription medicines to auto parts to power strip surge protectors, holiday lights you buy, besides the designer goods are being counterfeited. It's a sad truth.</s>WILLIS: Wow, that is scary. I mean, stuff that you rely on, to keep you safe, could be fake. Now, let's talk a little bit about how the Internet might make this all possible.</s>MARKS: Well, you know, the Internet revolutionizes everything we have today and it has done this with fakes, as well. It's made it easier, one, to bring the manufacturers and the people who sell this stuff together, besides letting you, the consumer, try to buy these goods. If you want to buy golf clubs you can go get replica Callaway golf clubs, and can buy prescription medications from Web sites that purport to be in Canada, but are actually based in Asia and you don't know what they're selling.</s>WILLIS: All right, let's show the folks some of the product we're talking about, because these are things that you're going to be buying this holiday season. Let's talk about this power strip right here. Now, this is a real one, correct?</s>MARKS: That's true.</s>WILLIS: And you know, because why?</s>MARKS: Well, the key thing with any inexpensive electronic device is to look for the Underwriters Laboratory seal, but not just the seal, these inexpensive products, like smoke alarms, power strip surge protectors, extension cords, have a silver hologram on them. And that's very important while there have been instances of those being counterfeit, as well, it's tougher to fake these holographic seals.</s>WILLIS: Well, definitely look for that. And if you're buying one of these fire alarms, boy you'd better look for this seal, because this is something that's going to keep your family safe, you want to make sure you're doing the right thing. Now, one of the interesting things that you talk about, stay away from the dollar store, you say.</s>MARKS: Yeah, unfortunately, in many instances there have been a lot of evidence that dollar stores often sell products...</s>WILLIS: Of all sorts, that's a branded name for ones...</s>MARKS: Right. No, we're talking about the deep discount stores that sell goods at very low prices. Because the source of these things are very questionable. There have been toothpaste that contained a component that's in your anti-freeze. There have been exploding cell phone batteries.</s>WILLIS: Scary stuff.</s>MARKS: There have been, again, holiday lights. There's a lot of products that make their way, migrate to the dollar stores from sources that we can't vouch for and, unfortunately, it does happen. Not everything, of course. But things you need to be worried about for your health and safety.</s>WILLIS: All right, let's show, some people do a good job and some people do a bad job. You say there's a whole business, for example, in perfumes, right? Fake ones, real ones. What's real and what's fake, here?</s>MARKS: Well, it's interesting because knockoffs and smell-a- likes in the perfume area are one of the areas where it's grey whether they're legal or not legal. But in some instances, they're rip-offs of the name of the product. We spent $5 for the fake, the Essay Miami (PH), which is a rip-off of Issey Miyake who's a famous Japanese designer. This costs a heck of a lot more and it may smell alike, but it may not.</s>WILLIS: Todd, great advice, great information. We appreciate your time.</s>MARKS: My pleasure. Willis: Thank you. You can hear much more about the impact of this week's news on your money on YOUR MONEY with Christine Romans and Ali Velshi Saturdays at 1:00 p.m. Eastern and Sunday at 3:00, right here on CNN. As always, we thank you for spending part of your Saturday with us. OPEN HOUSE will be back here next week right here on CNN and you can catch us on HEADLINE NEWS every Saturday and Sunday at 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time. Don't go anywhere, your top stories are next in the CNN NEWSROOM. Have a great weekend.