CPSC Acting Chairman Feldman Highlights Criminal Enforcement Efforts to Combat Trade Fraud and Dangerous Consumer Products

At INTERPOL Conference in Bangkok, Feldman highlights criminal prosecutions, counterfeit safety certification marks, and international law enforcement cooperation

WASHINGTON, Oct. 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Acting Chairman Peter A. Feldman today delivered keynote remarks at the 19th International Law Enforcement Intellectual Property Crime Conference in Bangkok, Thailand, outlining CPSC's efforts to combat dangerous imports, strengthen criminal enforcement, and address trade fraud and counterfeiting.

Global e-commerce presents growing enforcement challenges, particularly when foreign sellers evade U.S. safety requirements and operate beyond the reach of traditional regulatory enforcement.

"Counterfeiting is not simply a matter of intellectual property theft," Feldman said. "It is also a matter of public safety. And increasingly, it is part of a much larger problem involving trade fraud, falsified compliance documents, deceptive business practices, and the deliberate evasion of laws designed to protect consumers."

Under President Trump's leadership, CPSC has intensified enforcement against dangerous products, including through criminal prosecutions of companies and executives that knowingly violate federal product safety requirements. In June 2025, two executives of Gree USA received federal prison sentences of 38 and 40 months for concealing fire hazards involving defective dehumidifiers linked to more than 450 reported fires, over $19 million in property damage, and four potentially associated deaths. In April 2026, Royal Sovereign International was sentenced to pay an $8 million criminal fine for knowingly and willfully failing to report hazards involving defective portable air conditioners imported from China, which were associated with more than 40 fires and one death.

CPSC is also working with the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security to combat international trade fraud. The joint Trade Fraud Task Force highlighted the Royal Sovereign prosecution among its enforcement results, while DOJ has separately identified forged product safety certificates as a form of trade fraud.

In May 2026, CPSC announced an initiative to examine counterfeit safety labels and certification marks, associated risks, and potential enforcement responses.

"The counterfeit mark does not make the product safe," Feldman said. "It makes the product appear safe. And that is a particularly dangerous form of deception."

Additional enforcement measures include CPSC's July 2026 electronic filing requirements for product compliance certificates, which improve the agency's ability to identify potentially hazardous imports. The Commission has also renewed its use of Section 12 of the Consumer Product Safety Act to seek federal court intervention against products presenting an imminent hazard.

"Our objective is not to restrict legitimate international commerce," Feldman said. "We want a marketplace in which responsible businesses can compete fairly, consumers can benefit from innovation and affordable products, and companies that comply with the law are not disadvantaged by competitors who evade it."

Organized by INTERPOL and UL Standards & Engagement, the conference brings together international law enforcement and industry representatives to combat intellectual property crime and illicit trade.

Read Acting Chairman Feldman's full remarks: Keynote Remarks of CPSC Acting Chairman Peter A. Feldman at the 19th Annual International IP Crime Conference

About CPSC
CPSC is the federal agency charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risks of injury associated with thousands of types of consumer products. Deaths, injuries, and property damage from consumer product-related incidents cost the nation more than $1 trillion annually. Since the agency was established more than 50 years ago, CPSC has worked to ensure the safety of consumer products, contributing to a decline in related injuries.

Federal law prohibits any person from selling products subject to a Commission-ordered recall or to a voluntary recall undertaken in consultation with CPSC.

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SOURCE U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission