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Filtered by Free — 134 articles

Mohamad Ali Ahmad

1 Feb. 2024

7 min read

Protection from the Storm – Implementing Lebanon’s Authentication and Traceability Solution

Lebanon is one of the few nations where the tobacco sector, including tobacco leaf farming and manufacturing, falls under state control.

Authentication Free Track and Trace Free

Chander S Jeena

10 Jan. 2024

7 min read

2023 in Review – Stand-Out Trends and Developments

In 2023, security solution providers continued developing optical features and solutions, often combined with covert security, tamper-evidence, unique identifiers, and associated data management systems. This re-confirmed the position and importance of overt security features. At the same time, suppliers embraced physical/digital ('phygital') solutions that drew them into the realm of near-field communication (NFC), blockchain, and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

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Nicola Sudan

18 Dec. 2023

3 min read

2023 – A Year in Review

Looking back over the year that was, three key developments stand out from the rest, as captured in this article.

Editorials Free Free

Nicola Sudan

13 Dec. 2023

4 min read

Interview with a Brand Owner – Mason Pearson

During a recent webinar hosted by De La Rue on the subject of what motivates the adoption of a brand protection solution, Bea Morrison, Director of Marketing of the distinguished British beauty brand Mason Pearson spoke about her company’s decision to implement a comprehensive solution against parallel trade.

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Nicola Sudan

24 Nov. 2023

5 min read

US Drug Tracking – Delays and Developments

In August, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced a one-year delay in enforcing the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) electronic tracking rules until November 2024, in order to provide a 12-month stabilisation period to aid compliance.

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Sven Bergmann

20 Nov. 2023

8 min read

Illicit Tobacco ‘Down Under’ Gets Worse – An Update

During the summer of 2021, I looked at the illicit trade that had started to spin out of control in Australia in the wake of the pandemic.

Excise Products Free Illicit Trade Free

Nicola Sudan

31 Oct. 2023

6 min read

From Stone Age to the Age-of-Not-Knowing-What’s-Real-Anymore – The Rise of Generative AI

The war in Ukraine has brought to the fore how difficult it is to differentiate between genuine photos and fakes these days, now that we can use generative artificial intelligence (AI) to create make-believe images.

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Nicola Sudan

26 Oct. 2023

9 min read

ITSA Counters Claim that Tax Stamp-Based Track and Trace Not Compatible with FCTC Protocol

The International Tax Stamp Association (ITSA) has responded to a claim by economic advisory firm Oxford Economics (OE) that tax stamp-based track and trace systems are not compatible with the WHO FCTC Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products, while ‘fully digital’ solutions, based on open standards, are.

Associations Free Free

Ian Lancaster

26 Oct. 2023

3 min read

Tax Stamp Standard Review Is Underway

As previously reported in Tax Stamp & Traceability News™, the international standard for excise tax stamps, ISO 22382:2018, is now due its five- year review, in accordance with ISO procedures (the International Organization for Standards).

Free Standards Free

Nicola Sudan

11 Oct. 2023

4 min read

A Review of TSTF 2023 – More Greenfields, Please!

One of the best comments coming out of the 11th Tax Stamp & Traceability Forum™ (TSTF), held from 2-4 October in Tbilisi, Georgia, was from a revenue authority attending the forum for the first time. They said that now that they’d seen first-hand what they’d been missing by not attending this event, they would be sure to attend all security printing conferences in future.

Events Free Free

Chander S Jeena

28 Sept. 2023

2 min read

Italy’s Age-Old Cheese Embraces Modern Tech to Combat Counterfeits

In a move that blends ancient culinary tradition with 21st-century innovation, Italian cheesemakers have turned to technology for a solution to their counterfeiting woes, by embedding edible microchips into their 40kg cheese wheels.

Free Free

Chander S Jeena

28 Sept. 2023

3 min read

Smartphones for Authentication Report Released

Reconnaissance International is pleased to announce the release of its new publication – ‘Smartphones for Authentication’ – the only publication of its kind.

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Nicola Sudan

26 Sept. 2023

4 min read

Tax Stamps and Track and Trace – Making Everything More Visible

Whether you use tax stamps or you don’t use tax stamps, let’s face it, illicit trade still exists. The difference is, tax stamps and associated track and trace and production monitoring systems help make illicit trade stand out more (like a sore thumb), plus they make it easier to trace illicit trade back to its origin, and identify at what point in the supply chain legal trade may have become illegal trade.

Free Track and Trace Free

Nicola Sudan

29 Aug. 2023

5 min read

How Cisco Plugs Counterfeit Networks

While all counterfeit goods potentially pose a risk for consumers and companies, that risk becomes amplified when we talk about products made by Cisco, one of the largest technology companies in the world, best known for its networking products.

Free Free

Nicola Sudan

23 Aug. 2023

5 min read

Smoking Out Illicit Tobacco in the UK: A Case of Good Enforcement Practice

Following the news from the UK that tougher sanctions are being introduced on illicit tobacco sellers, this article takes a closer look at the close-knit network of organisations engaged in tackling illicit trade at retail level in the country.

Excise Products Free Illicit Trade Free

Nicola Sudan

30 July 2023

3 min read

ASPA Forum Aims for Zero Counterfeiting

With their sights firmly set on a future with no counterfeiting in it, more than 150 delegates came together for the 5th edition of the Traceability and Authentication Forum (TAF), held on 6-7 July, in New Delhi, India.

Free Free

Nicola Sudan

27 July 2023

6 min read

Track and Trace Working Group Lays Out Recommendations for FCTC Info Share Point

The third session of the Meeting of the Parties (MOP3) to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products will take place on 27-30 November in Panama, and the provisional agenda has now been released.

Free Illicit Trade Track and Trace Free

Nicola Sudan

4 July 2023

2 min read

Partnership Leads to New Class of Security Feature

The authentication and brand protection industries are not known, for obvious reasons, for their willingness to share information. But a chance meeting at a Reconnaissance conference between a client and supplier is beginning to bear fruit.

Free Free

Francisco Mandiola

2 July 2023

4 min read

Déjà Vu in Costa Rica

A little over two years ago, Costa Rica was in the throes of allegations by TRACIT (Transnational Alliance to Combat Illicit Trade) that the best way to fight illicit tobacco trade was through a close collaboration between private sector companies (eg. tobacco producers) and the public sector.

Free Illicit Trade Free

Nicola Sudan

30 May 2023

4 min read

MIT Fights Fake Seeds with Silk

In the mid-2010s, a series of large agriscience companies introduced a range of technologies to help tackle counterfeit agricultural products. Among them was Supply Chain Track and Trace (SCTT) and Innovative Product Label Technology, both from BASF, together with DuPont’s Izon® holographic label and Bayer CropScience’s mobile app.

Free Free

Latest News

Protection from the Storm – Implementing Lebanon’s Authentication and Traceability Solution

2023 in Review – Stand-Out Trends and Developments

2023 – A Year in Review

Interview with a Brand Owner – Mason Pearson

US Drug Tracking – Delays and Developments

Illicit Tobacco ‘Down Under’ Gets Worse – An Update

From Stone Age to the Age-of-Not-Knowing-What’s-Real-Anymore – The Rise of Generative AI

ITSA Counters Claim that Tax Stamp-Based Track and Trace Not Compatible with FCTC Protocol

Tax Stamp Standard Review Is Underway

A Review of TSTF 2023 – More Greenfields, Please!

Italy’s Age-Old Cheese Embraces Modern Tech to Combat Counterfeits

Smartphones for Authentication Report Released

Tax Stamps and Track and Trace – Making Everything More Visible

How Cisco Plugs Counterfeit Networks

Smoking Out Illicit Tobacco in the UK: A Case of Good Enforcement Practice

ASPA Forum Aims for Zero Counterfeiting

Track and Trace Working Group Lays Out Recommendations for FCTC Info Share Point

Partnership Leads to New Class of Security Feature

Déjà Vu in Costa Rica

MIT Fights Fake Seeds with Silk

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