OpSec Security’s End-to-End Solution for Brand Protection

In the January issue of Authentication & Brand News™, we described how brand protection systems increasingly consist of an integrated physical/digital solution that offers multiple functions.

Notably, such systems can also deliver against disparate business objectives. These include countering IP infringement and counterfeit, tackling online fraud, mitigating trade diversion and channel conflict, managing supply chain integrity and risks, and disrupting and suppressing the pirating of digital content… as well as a greater commitment to sustainability and transparency.

One company providing such a solution is OpSec Security, a leader in brand protection. OpSec’s customers span market sectors that are most in need of brand protection, including consumer and luxury goods, fashion and apparel, automotive and industrial, and media and entertainment.

OpSec’s fully integrated programme for brand protection (© OpSec Security).

Taking the fashion and apparel sector as an example, OpSec offers a solution that begins with the application of physical security features, for quick and easy visual authentication, and extends into product traceability systems, consumer engagement, and online marketplace monitoring.

Smart security labels

The OpSec® Dynamic Premium Tear and Sew label is designed for applications in apparel and footwear. It features a full-face holographic high-security image, and its reverse side can be printed with a serialised digital identifier in either human readable or 2D barcode form. This coding is designed to leverage the OpSec® Insight digital platform. The label can be custom printed (text, logos) or embedded with covert security features, such as taggants.

For fashion and luxury items, OpSec provides brand owners with the option to incorporate overt, covert, and forensic security features into various trim items, from badges and crests to hangtags and labels, enhancing the product, reinforcing brand identity, and integrating seamlessly into the manufacturing process. Features are tested to the highest standards for enduring performance. As well as barcodes, OpSec can also incorporate NFC and RFID technologies into its products.

Brand owners also have the option of choosing features from the OpSec® Eco Collection, a line that uses recycled (and recyclable) materials and water-based inks, which can be incorporated into product tags and labels to help brands meet their sustainability goals. The eco-materials include sustainable FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) paper board for swing tags, unbleached organic cotton labels, and damask woven labels and badges made with 100% recycled polyester yarn.

Licencing and product lifecycle management

The secure OpSec® Trademark Insight platform brings an integrated approach to licencing and product lifecycle management. It provides brand owners with complete control across their licencing programmes, with insights into licensee and channel performance, and sales reporting.

Starting with licence approval and product design, the platform manages contract setup, royalty policies, and artwork submissions. Once designs are finalised, the platform assigns unique product identifiers that are added to merchandising elements (hangtags, labels), allowing consumers to authenticate products, and enabling brand owners to trace products throughout distribution chains.

Consumer engagement

OpSec also extends the value of brand protection programmes by adding consumer engagement functionality that facilitates interactions with end customers.

This uses product identifiers that perform other functions, such as traceability or authentication, to allow brand owners to launch calls to action (such as promotions) for consumers and loyal fans.

Consumer engagement is an area of great interest to brand owners as they seek to strengthen relationships with their brand followers and augment propositions by exposing product information, supply chain transparency and, ultimately, provenance. The ubiquity of smartphones and the availability and integration of a wide range of product, supply chain and other data looks set to accelerate this development.

Online protection

OpSec’s suite of online brand protection solutions combine proprietary technologies and a global team of expert analysts to secure brands in cyberspace. In addition to online counterfeit detection and takedown, OpSec monitors and enforces against pirated content and tackles phishing and other scams that target consumers and can harm brand reputation.