When a customer says they received a fake, a brand should first ask about safety, then secure the product and order details, and then compare the code and packaging against its own records. Words like "fake" and "genuine" come only after those checks. Some of these complaints turn out to be not copies at all but diverted stock, refilled packaging or an ordinary quality problem, and each of those leads somewhere different.
Why does safety come first?
If the product has been used and the customer describes an injury, an allergic reaction or damage, this is a product safety matter before it is a brand protection one. Ask the customer to stop using it and pass the record to the quality team.
In Türkiye, Article 7 of Law No. 7223 requires manufacturers to keep a record of complaints. For products sold in the EU under the GPSR, complaints alleging a dangerous product must be investigated and entered in an internal register (Article 9(12)). An unlogged complaint leaves a gap that is hard to close if the product turns out to be yours.
What should the first reply say?
The agent should not reach a verdict. "This is a fake" puts you against the seller, "this is genuine" puts you against the customer, and both are weak when said before any check. Give a case number, explain what the review covers and say when you will reply.
Handle refund requests separately. Under Turkish consumer law (Article 11 of Law No. 6502), the buyer's remedies for a defective product run against the seller; other jurisdictions have their own rules. If the brand did not sell the item directly, the agent should say so and point the customer to the channel where they bought it.
What should you ask the customer for?
This list is enough to compare the product against your records and find the seller:
- Clear photos of the front, back, closure and code area
- A close-up of the batch number, serial number and expiry date
- The state of the cap or seal, and whether the product has been opened
- The order screenshot or invoice, and the purchase date
- The seller name, store name and listing link
- What raised the doubt: smell, colour, texture, price or the box
Türkiye's Law No. 6698 requires personal data to be relevant, limited and proportionate to the purpose. Ask customers to hide addresses and phone numbers in photos, and do not collect what the review does not need. Ask them to keep the product, the box and the shipping parcel.
Which checks come in which order?
| Step | Check | Question | What can mislead you |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Batch and date | Was this batch made, and do date and product match? | A character misread from a photo |
| 2 | Serial or code record | Is the number on record, and where has it been scanned? | The customer's own repeat scans |
| 3 | Shipment record | Which market or dealer did this batch go to? | Records kept only at batch level |
| 4 | Packaging version | Do the design, language and print match the version used at that date? | Old and new designs overlapping in a transition |
| 5 | Packaging verification | Is the packaging signature or security feature present? | Stock made before the feature was added |
| 6 | Physical inspection | Do the cap, seal, label and contents fit together? | Damage in transit |
| 7 | Content analysis | Does the content meet specification? | The effect of storage conditions |
The last two steps need the product in your hands. Record who handed it over, when, in what packaging, who opened it and where it was stored. That chain matters if the case becomes a seller complaint or a legal matter.
What are the five possible outcomes, and what comes next?
| Finding | Likely meaning | Next step |
|---|---|---|
| Code not on record, packaging version does not match | Strong suspicion of a copy | Seller and listing follow-up, legal team |
| Code and packaging genuine, content in doubt | Refilling or tampering | Collect the product, have the content analysed |
| Product genuine, sales channel unexpected | Grey market or channel diversion | Find the dealer in the shipment record, handle under the contract |
| Product genuine, with a defect | Quality problem | Quality process, check other complaints on the batch |
| Not enough evidence | Inconclusive | Keep the case open, request the product, record the result as inconclusive |
An inconclusive result is a valid record. A firm verdict drawn from a photo can be read against you later.
What do you do about the seller and the listing?
While the listing is live, capture the URL, seller identity, price, a screenshot and the date. One customer's photo is rarely enough, so where needed, plan a test purchase from the same seller with your legal counsel and run the item through the same table of checks.
On marketplaces in Türkiye, the basis is Article 9 of Law No. 6563. A product is taken down following the right holder's complaint supported by information and documents, and is republished if the seller objects with documents. The brand or its counsel files that complaint, so the findings need to be clear enough to withstand an objection. The Constitutional Court has annulled the first paragraph of that article as regards consumer contracts, with effect from 2 March 2027, so follow that date with your counsel when assessing marketplace liability. Evidence by channel is in our article on counterfeit listings.
What do you tell the customer?
The reply should state what was checked and what was found. For example: "The batch number you shared is not in our records, and the packaging print does not match the version we used in that period. We therefore cannot confirm that this product was made by us. You can use this message when you contact the channel you bought from." Avoid accusing the seller. Next steps belong in the case file, not in the reply.
How do complaints turn into data?
Log every case with the same fields: product, batch, channel, seller, outcome and time taken. When a seller, batch or region recurs, the priority changes. The same table is your most concrete source when deciding which product to protect first.
Where does Spectrace fit in this flow?
With Grafex, packaging is read with the mobile app; because the signature applies from new production onwards, a result on older stock is read together with the production date. With Tagvex, the record shows how many times and where a number was scanned, and where it was shipped. Authex documents listing and seller findings, ranks them and assigns them to team members; the brand and its counsel run the complaint and any legal step.
Sources
- Legislation Information System, Law No. 7223 on Product Safety and Technical Regulations (Turkish)
- Legislation Information System, Law No. 6502 on Consumer Protection (Turkish)
- Legislation Information System, Law No. 6698 on Personal Data Protection (Turkish)
- Legislation Information System, Law No. 6563 on the Regulation of Electronic Commerce (Turkish)
- EUR-Lex, Regulation (EU) 2023/988 on general product safety, 2023
