<p>Michael Cohen’s daughter Samantha Cohen recently berated US President Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump. In a new Vanity Fair interview, Samantha referred to Ivanka as “phony”, “fake”, and “gross”</p>

<p>Her father, Michael Cohen was Trump's&nbsp;lawyer from 2006-2018, and In the process she became close to the Trump family.</p>

<p><strong>Also read:&nbsp;</strong><a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/trump-hired-a-faux-bama-during-white-house-run-cohen-in-new-book-325533" hreflang="en">Trump hired a 'Faux-Bama' during White House run: Cohen in new book</a></p>

<p>Samantha, in the interviews also said that Trumps used her family, with Ivanka constantly ignoring her, and reportedly “ratting” her out for smoking cigarettes.</p>

<p>Cohen added that their families lived in the same building. But whenever Ivanka ran into Samantha, she would pay her no heed and “pretend” she’s not there. “I always found it so strange because she loved my dad”, she added.</p>

<p>She also added how Ivanka offered her condolences to the Cohen family, and to her in person after Michael Cohen was sentenced to prison for tax evasion, and violations in campaign finances.&nbsp;</p>

<p>“We all feel so terribly about what's happening to your dad. Our hearts are breaking for him. I'm so sorry that this happened to you guys”, Ivanka reportedly said to Samantha, as she claimed.</p>

<p><strong>Also read:&nbsp;</strong><a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/book-trouble-trumps-ex-lawyer-michael-cohen-accuses-him-of-colluding-with-russia-to-win-elections-320361" hreflang="en">Book trouble: Trump's ex-lawyer, Michael Cohen, accuses him of colluding with Russia to win elections</a></p>

<p>Cohen added that Ivanka said this a “high-pitched, sugary voice”. She also does not think it was a genuine remark. “I knew how fake it was”, she said.</p>

<p>“It just felt like someone threw a bucket of slime on me because it was so phony&nbsp;and gross”, Cohen added.</p>

<p>She also claimed how nobody gave a “rat’s a**” about her father, and her family. While attributing her dad, she said how her family was “collateral damage”.</p>


Michael Cohen’s daughter Samantha Cohen recently berated US President Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump. In a new Vanity Fair interview, Samantha referred to Ivanka as “phony”, “fake”, and “gross” Her father, Michael Cohen was Trump's lawyer from 2006-2018, and In the process she became close to the Trump family.

Michael Cohen’s daughter Samantha Cohen recently berated US President Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump. In a new Vanity Fair interview, Samantha referred to Ivanka as “phony”, “fake”, and “gross” Her father, Michael Cohen was Trump's lawyer from 2006-2018, and In the process she became close to the Trump family. Also read: Trump hired a 'Faux-Bama' during White House run: Cohen in new book Samantha, in the interviews also said that Trumps used her family, with Ivanka constantly ignoring her, and reportedly “ratting” her out for smoking cigarettes. Cohen added that their families lived in the same building. But whenever Ivanka ran into Samantha, she would pay her no heed and “pretend” she’s not there. “I always found it so strange because she loved my dad”, she added. She also added how Ivanka offered her condolences to the Cohen family, and to her in person after Michael Cohen was sentenced to prison for tax evasion, and violations in campaign finances. “We all feel so terribly about what's happening to your dad. Our hearts are breaking for him. I'm so sorry that this happened to you guys”, Ivanka reportedly said to Samantha, as she claimed. Also read: Book trouble: Trump's ex-lawyer, Michael Cohen, accuses him of colluding with Russia to win elections Cohen added that Ivanka said this a “high-pitched, sugary voice”. She also does not think it was a genuine remark. “I knew how fake it was”, she said. “It just felt like someone threw a bucket of slime on me because it was so phony and gross”, Cohen added. She also claimed how nobody gave a “rat’s a**” about her father, and her family. While attributing her dad, she said how her family was “collateral damage”.

Trump's former lawyer's daughter Samantha Cohen refers to Ivanka as 'fake' and 'gross'

<p>Israeli actress Gal Gadot became a household name after her superhero movie &quot;Wonder Woman&quot;&nbsp;released earlier this year. The movie went on to rake in hundreds of millions at the box office worldwide.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Wonder Woman after making headlines for her acting skills in movies is now in news for a fake porn video that has gone viral on the internet.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Apparantly, a&nbsp;Reddit user named &#39;deepfakes&#39; created the clip which features a woman that looks like Gal Gadot. According to local media reports, the video was created by training a machine learning algorithm on stock photos.</p>

<p>This is not the first time when this account has allegedly created fake porn videos of celebrities. Earlier, similar clips of A-listers were doing the rounds including Taylor Swift, Scarlett Johannson and Maisie Williams.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


A Reddit user created the video featuring a woman who looks like the actress

Israeli actress Gal Gadot became a household name after her superhero movie "Wonder Woman" released earlier this year. The movie went on to rake in hundreds of millions at the box office worldwide. The Wonder Woman after making headlines for her acting skills in movies is now in news for a fake porn video that has gone viral on the internet. Apparantly, a Reddit user named 'deepfakes' created the clip which features a woman that looks like Gal Gadot. According to local media reports, the video was created by training a machine learning algorithm on stock photos. This is not the first time when this account has allegedly created fake porn videos of celebrities. Earlier, similar clips of A-listers were doing the rounds including Taylor Swift, Scarlett Johannson and Maisie Williams.

'Wonder Woman' star Gal Gadot's fake porn video goes viral

<p>Switzerland&#39;s financial watchdog has closed&nbsp;down&nbsp;what it said was the provider of a fake&nbsp;cryptocurrency&nbsp;and is investigating around a dozen other possible fraud cases, in the&nbsp;latest&nbsp;clamp-down&nbsp;on the risks involving virtual money.</p>

<p>The move by the FINMA watchdog comes on the heels of Chinese authorities&#39; ordering Beijing-based&nbsp;cryptocurrency&nbsp;exchanges to stop trading and immediately notify users of their closure.</p>

<p>Virtual currencies such as Bitcoin, which are issued and usually controlled by their developers and not backed by a central bank, are hailed by their supporters as a fast and efficient way of managing money.</p>

<p>But regulators and traditional banks are increasingly concerned about the risks of fraud in the burgeoning online&nbsp;cryptocurrency&nbsp;underworld.</p>

<p>JPMorgan Chief Executive Jamie Dimon last week said Bitcoin, the original and still the biggest cryptocurrency, &quot;is a fraud&quot; and will eventually &quot;blow up&quot;.</p>

<p>The QUID PRO QUO Association&nbsp;shut&nbsp;down&nbsp;by FINMA had provided so-called E-Coins for more than a year and had amassed funds of at least 4 million&nbsp;Swiss&nbsp;francs ($4.2 million) from several hundred users, FINMA said in a statement on Tuesday.</p>

<p>&quot;This activity is similar to the deposit-taking business of a bank and is illegal unless the company in question holds the relevant financial market licence,&quot; FINMA, Switzerland&#39;s Financial Market Supervisory Authority, said.</p>

<p>E-Coin was not like &quot;real cryptocurrencies&quot;, FINMA said, because it was not stored on distributed networks using blockchain technology but was instead kept locally on QUID PRO QUO&#39;s servers.</p>

<p>Reuters was not immediately able to reach Zurich-based QUID PRO QUO for comment.</p>

<p>FINMA said it had three other companies on its warning list due to suspicious activity in cryptocurrencies and was conducting 11 investigations into other possible fake virtual currencies.</p>

<p>The&nbsp;Swiss&nbsp;finance industry has been looking for new avenues of growth following a weakening of its bank secrecy rules during a global crackdown&nbsp;on tax evasion.</p>

<p>The small&nbsp;Swiss&nbsp;canton of Zug, famed for low taxes that have drawn multinational companies, has been trying to turn itself into a hub for virtual currency firms.</p>

<p>But the QUID PRO QUO case is an example of the pitfalls of investing in the booming but still-murky&nbsp;cryptocurrency&nbsp;world.</p>

<p>Of the money users had invested, FINMA said it had so far seized and blocked assets worth around 2 million francs.</p>

<p>Initial coin offerings, or ICOs, have fuelled a rapid ascent in the value of all cryptocurrencies, from about $17 billion at the start of the year to a record high close to $180 billion at the beginning of September.</p>

<p>An ICO is a practice of creating and selling digital currencies or tokens to investors to finance start-up projects.</p>


The move by the FINMA watchdog comes on the heels of Chinese authorities' ordering Beijing-based?cryptocurrency?exchanges to stop trading and immediately notify users of their closure.

Switzerland's financial watchdog has closed down what it said was the provider of a fake cryptocurrency and is investigating around a dozen other possible fraud cases, in the latest clamp-down on the risks involving virtual money. The move by the FINMA watchdog comes on the heels of Chinese authorities' ordering Beijing-based cryptocurrency exchanges to stop trading and immediately notify users of their closure. Virtual currencies such as Bitcoin, which are issued and usually controlled by their developers and not backed by a central bank, are hailed by their supporters as a fast and efficient way of managing money. But regulators and traditional banks are increasingly concerned about the risks of fraud in the burgeoning online cryptocurrency underworld. JPMorgan Chief Executive Jamie Dimon last week said Bitcoin, the original and still the biggest cryptocurrency, "is a fraud" and will eventually "blow up". The QUID PRO QUO Association shut down by FINMA had provided so-called E-Coins for more than a year and had amassed funds of at least 4 million Swiss francs ($4.2 million) from several hundred users, FINMA said in a statement on Tuesday. "This activity is similar to the deposit-taking business of a bank and is illegal unless the company in question holds the relevant financial market licence," FINMA, Switzerland's Financial Market Supervisory Authority, said. E-Coin was not like "real cryptocurrencies", FINMA said, because it was not stored on distributed networks using blockchain technology but was instead kept locally on QUID PRO QUO's servers. Reuters was not immediately able to reach Zurich-based QUID PRO QUO for comment. FINMA said it had three other companies on its warning list due to suspicious activity in cryptocurrencies and was conducting 11 investigations into other possible fake virtual currencies. The Swiss finance industry has been looking for new avenues of growth following a weakening of its bank secrecy rules during a global crackdown on tax evasion. The small Swiss canton of Zug, famed for low taxes that have drawn multinational companies, has been trying to turn itself into a hub for virtual currency firms. But the QUID PRO QUO case is an example of the pitfalls of investing in the booming but still-murky cryptocurrency world. Of the money users had invested, FINMA said it had so far seized and blocked assets worth around 2 million francs. Initial coin offerings, or ICOs, have fuelled a rapid ascent in the value of all cryptocurrencies, from about $17 billion at the start of the year to a record high close to $180 billion at the beginning of September. An ICO is a practice of creating and selling digital currencies or tokens to investors to finance start-up projects.

Swiss watchdog shuts down fake e-coin in cryptocurrency crackdown

<p>Godmen, even the fake ones, know what the sacred texts say - &lsquo;You reap what you sow&rsquo;. Dera Sacha Sauda chief, who goes by the name of Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh&mdash; a farcical attempt to symbolise communal togetherness &mdash; has been convicted by a CBI court for rape and sentenced to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment. It&rsquo;s taken 15 years for justice to come, but as a popular line in Hindi films goes, &ldquo;Kanoon ke hath bahut lambey hain&rdquo; (the hands of the law are longer). Still, many would say that it&rsquo;s too little as a punishment for a repeated crime of such heinous nature; he ought to have been given a life term.</p>

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<p>Baba Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh is one among the many discredited so-called godmen the Indian society has grappled with and will continue to do so. This is because the phenomenon of fake godmen did not begin with this baba nor will it will end with him. But, how is it that a society which has been enlightened spiritually and shown the path to true devotion from the likes of Ramakrishna Paramhansa and Ramanna Maharishi and Swami Vivekananda, from saints such as Tukaram and Namdev and Hazrat Nizamuddin, to Sri Aurobindo and J Krishnamurthy, and from devotees like Mirabai, should fall into the clutches of the likes of Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh and Asaram Bapu and Nityananda &mdash; and preachers of the Zakir Naik kind?&nbsp;</p>

<p>Make no mistake, the Dera Sacha Sauda movement is not going to disappear with its leader secured behind bars. Asaram Bapu&rsquo;s devotees are still out there in thousands across the country. Give these devotees all the evidence against their revered spiritual leader &mdash; even evidence of rape &mdash; but they will just refuse to buy it. They will see conspiracies behind the actions against their babas and swamis and will come out on the streets in violent protest. What makes the forgery tick and why?</p>

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<p>One reason is the mindset of contemporary society. Today&rsquo;s devotee seeks instant nirvana and is attracted by glamorous displays of the path to salvation. It has no patience with the ascetic withdrawn from daily life, who lays down a long and difficult road to enlightenment. Such a follower sees nothing aberrant in a godman acting in films, dressing in a hilarious manner, and indulging in politics and immorality.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Of course, this is not enough for a godman to win over lakhs of supporters. He spins off various charitable activities, such as free schools and hospital to attract crowds and devotees. Some of them, such as the Dera chief, appeal to the conscience of marginalised sections of society who have been disappointed by the mainstream religious order and offer them an alternative. Once his charitable empire grows, so does his religious/spiritual domination. Soon, he begins to attract the attention of politicians who are ever on the prowl for vote-banks. That is how Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh grew in stature. And, this is the reason why Haryana Government dealt with the brewing crisis prior to his conviction with kid gloves.</p>

<p>It has been reported that the Dera chief had extended his support to the BJP during the last Assembly election in the State. He has also hobnobbed with senior Congress leaders. Similar was the case with Zakir Naik. His social activities and religious appeal led to many senior members of the Congress allowing him a free run while he spewed communal venom during the UPA rule. Thus, the religion-social work-political support nexus can make an imposter into a self-styled godman.</p>

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<p>Today&rsquo;s godmen don&rsquo;t appear to trust God to protect them - they have their own private armies.</p>

<p>Three years ago, another one of this tribe, Sant Rampal of Haryana, had sought to cock a snook at the law of the land when the police had to move in to nab him. His private army, equipped to fight, kept vigil over his ashram in Hissar and robustly resisted the police.</p>

<p>Baba Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh&rsquo;s supporters were armed with petrol bombs and other such implements. It may be recalled that a year ago, so-called spiritual leader Ramvriksh Yadav, who claimed to be a follower of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, had, along with supporters, occupied a public park and turned it into his sect&rsquo;s headquarters. It was doubtlessly done with the connivance of the some of the State&rsquo;s then ruling party leaders. When the administration was compelled to act against Yadav on court orders, mayhem resulted. The so-called spiritual leader&rsquo;s private army swung into action, leading to serious violence. There are those who believe that religion and spirituality shun violence, but sects run by the likes of Yadav and Baba Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh certainly do not.</p>

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<h5>A journalist who had written a critical report on the Dera&rsquo;s functioning and its leader&rsquo;s notorious reputation, lost his life.&nbsp;</h5>
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<p>It can be argued that a majority of the followers of controversial godmen are naive, and they genuinely believe in the goodness of their leader. They have no opportunity to run away from this belief because that &lsquo;goodness&rsquo; is amplified many times over through sustained propaganda &mdash; when this does not work in certain cases, other, strong-arm methods are covertly applied. Critics of such leaders are known to have disappeared or died in suspicious circumstances. It happened in Sathya Sai Baba&rsquo;s case, and it happened in Baba Gurmeet Ram Rahim&rsquo;s case either &mdash; a journalist, who had written a critical report on the Dera&rsquo;s functioning and its leader&rsquo;s notorious reputation, lost his life.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The rising stock of fake godmen in Indian society has also to do with the sense of dissatisfaction and mental unrest that has come with materialism and consumerism. It can be argued that both these reasons prevail in Western society too, and perhaps in a more acute form, and yet the dubious godmen phenomenon is more strongly rooted in India. This is true, but there are two differences. The first is that the Indian mind, evolved through generations of a particular cultural ethos which seeks to place spiritualism on a higher pedestal than materialism, gets easily rebellious and is more susceptible to be drawn towards a spiritual/religious calling &mdash; even if it is to be satiated by questionable quarters.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The second reason has to do with the flexibility of Hinduism &mdash; the country&rsquo;s majority religion. This flexibility has indeed been Hinduism&rsquo;s strength, preventing it from becoming rigid, unchanging and exclusive. It has allowed the prosperity of other religions too, some new and others that spun off from Hinduism itself and evolved as independent entities. There has been no central institutionalised authority to guide the affairs of an ordinary Hindu. But this commendable feature also allowed space to all sorts of dubious elements to project themselves as spiritual or religious leaders, or even incarnations of God, who had the mandate to do anything.<strong>&nbsp;</strong></p>

<p>And yet, despite the bleak present, there is hope for future through the exposure of the likes of Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh. Indian society ought to be rattled enough to abandon the lure of false godmen and delve into the life and works of the country&rsquo;s great spiritual leaders, such as the icons of the Bhakti movement, for a meaningful life.</p>


Dera Sacha Sauda movement is not going to disappear with its leader secured behind bars.

Godmen, even the fake ones, know what the sacred texts say - ‘You reap what you sow’. Dera Sacha Sauda chief, who goes by the name of Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh— a farcical attempt to symbolise communal togetherness — has been convicted by a CBI court for rape and sentenced to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment. It’s taken 15 years for justice to come, but as a popular line in Hindi films goes, “Kanoon ke hath bahut lambey hain” (the hands of the law are longer). Still, many would say that it’s too little as a punishment for a repeated crime of such heinous nature; he ought to have been given a life term. The phenomenon of fake godmen did not begin with this baba nor will it will end with him. × Baba Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh is one among the many discredited so-called godmen the Indian society has grappled with and will continue to do so. This is because the phenomenon of fake godmen did not begin with this baba nor will it will end with him. But, how is it that a society which has been enlightened spiritually and shown the path to true devotion from the likes of Ramakrishna Paramhansa and Ramanna Maharishi and Swami Vivekananda, from saints such as Tukaram and Namdev and Hazrat Nizamuddin, to Sri Aurobindo and J Krishnamurthy, and from devotees like Mirabai, should fall into the clutches of the likes of Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh and Asaram Bapu and Nityananda — and preachers of the Zakir Naik kind? Make no mistake, the Dera Sacha Sauda movement is not going to disappear with its leader secured behind bars. Asaram Bapu’s devotees are still out there in thousands across the country. Give these devotees all the evidence against their revered spiritual leader — even evidence of rape — but they will just refuse to buy it. They will see conspiracies behind the actions against their babas and swamis and will come out on the streets in violent protest. What makes the forgery tick and why? Today’s devotee seeks instant nirvana and is attracted by glamorous displays of the path to salvation. × One reason is the mindset of contemporary society. Today’s devotee seeks instant nirvana and is attracted by glamorous displays of the path to salvation. It has no patience with the ascetic withdrawn from daily life, who lays down a long and difficult road to enlightenment. Such a follower sees nothing aberrant in a godman acting in films, dressing in a hilarious manner, and indulging in politics and immorality. Of course, this is not enough for a godman to win over lakhs of supporters. He spins off various charitable activities, such as free schools and hospital to attract crowds and devotees. Some of them, such as the Dera chief, appeal to the conscience of marginalised sections of society who have been disappointed by the mainstream religious order and offer them an alternative. Once his charitable empire grows, so does his religious/spiritual domination. Soon, he begins to attract the attention of politicians who are ever on the prowl for vote-banks. That is how Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh grew in stature. And, this is the reason why Haryana Government dealt with the brewing crisis prior to his conviction with kid gloves. It has been reported that the Dera chief had extended his support to the BJP during the last Assembly election in the State. He has also hobnobbed with senior Congress leaders. Similar was the case with Zakir Naik. His social activities and religious appeal led to many senior members of the Congress allowing him a free run while he spewed communal venom during the UPA rule. Thus, the religion-social work-political support nexus can make an imposter into a self-styled godman. The religion-social work-political support nexus can make an imposter into a self-styled godman. × Today’s godmen don’t appear to trust God to protect them - they have their own private armies. Three years ago, another one of this tribe, Sant Rampal of Haryana, had sought to cock a snook at the law of the land when the police had to move in to nab him. His private army, equipped to fight, kept vigil over his ashram in Hissar and robustly resisted the police. Baba Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh’s supporters were armed with petrol bombs and other such implements. It may be recalled that a year ago, so-called spiritual leader Ramvriksh Yadav, who claimed to be a follower of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, had, along with supporters, occupied a public park and turned it into his sect’s headquarters. It was doubtlessly done with the connivance of the some of the State’s then ruling party leaders. When the administration was compelled to act against Yadav on court orders, mayhem resulted. The so-called spiritual leader’s private army swung into action, leading to serious violence. There are those who believe that religion and spirituality shun violence, but sects run by the likes of Yadav and Baba Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh certainly do not. A journalist who had written a critical report on the Dera’s functioning and its leader’s notorious reputation, lost his life. × It can be argued that a majority of the followers of controversial godmen are naive, and they genuinely believe in the goodness of their leader. They have no opportunity to run away from this belief because that ‘goodness’ is amplified many times over through sustained propaganda — when this does not work in certain cases, other, strong-arm methods are covertly applied. Critics of such leaders are known to have disappeared or died in suspicious circumstances. It happened in Sathya Sai Baba’s case, and it happened in Baba Gurmeet Ram Rahim’s case either — a journalist, who had written a critical report on the Dera’s functioning and its leader’s notorious reputation, lost his life. The rising stock of fake godmen in Indian society has also to do with the sense of dissatisfaction and mental unrest that has come with materialism and consumerism. It can be argued that both these reasons prevail in Western society too, and perhaps in a more acute form, and yet the dubious godmen phenomenon is more strongly rooted in India. This is true, but there are two differences. The first is that the Indian mind, evolved through generations of a particular cultural ethos which seeks to place spiritualism on a higher pedestal than materialism, gets easily rebellious and is more susceptible to be drawn towards a spiritual/religious calling — even if it is to be satiated by questionable quarters. The second reason has to do with the flexibility of Hinduism — the country’s majority religion. This flexibility has indeed been Hinduism’s strength, preventing it from becoming rigid, unchanging and exclusive. It has allowed the prosperity of other religions too, some new and others that spun off from Hinduism itself and evolved as independent entities. There has been no central institutionalised authority to guide the affairs of an ordinary Hindu. But this commendable feature also allowed space to all sorts of dubious elements to project themselves as spiritual or religious leaders, or even incarnations of God, who had the mandate to do anything. And yet, despite the bleak present, there is hope for future through the exposure of the likes of Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh. Indian society ought to be rattled enough to abandon the lure of false godmen and delve into the life and works of the country’s great spiritual leaders, such as the icons of the Bhakti movement, for a meaningful life.

Will Ram Rahim's imprisonment bring to an end the godman syndrome in India?

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd on Friday went public with a new drive to display its determination to stamp out fake goods, urging brands to help its anti-piracy campaign rather than trade rebukes on the issue.<br />
<br />
The US-listed online shopping powerhouse has been dogged by accusations that its sites are flooded with copy-cat products, culminating with its ejection this year from a US-based anti-counterfeiting alliance only weeks after being admitted.<br />
<br />
At an intellectual property conference it&#39;s hosting in Hangzhou, Alibaba, on Friday, unveiled a new online system to help track and remove fakes as its top anti-piracy official called for more cooperation with makers of branded goods.<br />
<br />
&quot;In the face of such a complex problem we can&#39;t be complaining about each other, or criticising each other...We have to have everybody involved and work together to do it,&quot; said Jessie Zheng, Alibaba&#39;s chief platform governance officer, speaking at its conference on intellectual property (IP) protection.<br />
<br />
&quot;In this battle it&#39;s you and me,&quot; said Zheng. &quot;It can&#39;t be you doing the work and me watching, or me doing the work and you talking. Our only choice is to join forces.&quot;<br />
<br />
Alibaba took an embarrassing hit in its fight against fakes earlier this year when it was forced out of the Washington-based International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition. This came after a mutiny by members of the group, including US luxury goods maker Michael Kors Holdings Inc and French group Kering SA&#39;s Gucci brand, against the Chinese firm.<br />
<br />
Friday&#39;s conference and the launch of the new online system for controlling fakes come about two months before Alibaba&#39;s hometown of Hangzhou hosts the annual summit of the G20.<br />
<br />
Several state leaders, including US President Barack Obama, may visit the company&#39;s college-like campus when they are in town, people with knowledge of the preparations said.<br />
<br />
The &quot;IP Joint-Force System&quot; launched on Friday is an online platform designed to streamline IP-related communications between brands and Alibaba, the company said.<br />
<br />
It expands an existing &quot;good faith takedown&quot; scheme started last year and is designed to simplify the removal of listings of suspected counterfeits.<br />
<br />
(Reuters)

This comes after Alibaba was accused multiple times of carrying counterfeit or 'copy-cat' products

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd on Friday went public with a new drive to display its determination to stamp out fake goods, urging brands to help its anti-piracy campaign rather than trade rebukes on the issue. The US-listed online shopping powerhouse has been dogged by accusations that its sites are flooded with copy-cat products, culminating with its ejection this year from a US-based anti-counterfeiting alliance only weeks after being admitted. At an intellectual property conference it's hosting in Hangzhou, Alibaba, on Friday, unveiled a new online system to help track and remove fakes as its top anti-piracy official called for more cooperation with makers of branded goods. "In the face of such a complex problem we can't be complaining about each other, or criticising each other...We have to have everybody involved and work together to do it," said Jessie Zheng, Alibaba's chief platform governance officer, speaking at its conference on intellectual property (IP) protection. "In this battle it's you and me," said Zheng. "It can't be you doing the work and me watching, or me doing the work and you talking. Our only choice is to join forces." Alibaba took an embarrassing hit in its fight against fakes earlier this year when it was forced out of the Washington-based International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition. This came after a mutiny by members of the group, including US luxury goods maker Michael Kors Holdings Inc and French group Kering SA's Gucci brand, against the Chinese firm. Friday's conference and the launch of the new online system for controlling fakes come about two months before Alibaba's hometown of Hangzhou hosts the annual summit of the G20. Several state leaders, including US President Barack Obama, may visit the company's college-like campus when they are in town, people with knowledge of the preparations said. The "IP Joint-Force System" launched on Friday is an online platform designed to streamline IP-related communications between brands and Alibaba, the company said. It expands an existing "good faith takedown" scheme started last year and is designed to simplify the removal of listings of suspected counterfeits. (Reuters)

E-commerce giant Alibaba launches drive to eliminate fake goods from its websites

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd said on Tuesday that it expects to nearly double its transaction volumes by 2020, signalling it still expects rampant growth as Executive Chairman Jack Ma pledged to intensify a crackdown on fake goods.<br />
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At an investor conference at its headquarters in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, Alibaba said it expects to record 6 trillion yuan ($912 billion) in gross merchandise volume (GMV) in fiscal 2020, nearly double 3.09 trillion yuan in fiscal 2016.<br />
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Echoing that growth, Ma said Alibaba expects to have 2 billion consumers on its books by 2036, up from 423 million active buyers in 2016.<br />
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Addressing concerns about the company&#39;s efforts to remove counterfeit products from its online platforms, Ma said Alibaba will do &quot;anything to stop the fake products&quot;. The company has been dogged for years by accusations that its shopping platforms were conduits for counterfeiters.<br />
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&quot;I promise you guys that counterfeits, fake products, and intellectual property theft - we are more and more confident than ever that we can solve the problem,&quot; he said.

Executive Chairman Jack Ma was even more hopeful long term, stating they'd have 2 billion annual consumers by 2036

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd said on Tuesday that it expects to nearly double its transaction volumes by 2020, signalling it still expects rampant growth as Executive Chairman Jack Ma pledged to intensify a crackdown on fake goods. At an investor conference at its headquarters in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, Alibaba said it expects to record 6 trillion yuan ($912 billion) in gross merchandise volume (GMV) in fiscal 2020, nearly double 3.09 trillion yuan in fiscal 2016. Echoing that growth, Ma said Alibaba expects to have 2 billion consumers on its books by 2036, up from 423 million active buyers in 2016. Addressing concerns about the company's efforts to remove counterfeit products from its online platforms, Ma said Alibaba will do "anything to stop the fake products". The company has been dogged for years by accusations that its shopping platforms were conduits for counterfeiters. "I promise you guys that counterfeits, fake products, and intellectual property theft - we are more and more confident than ever that we can solve the problem," he said.

Alibaba expects to record $912 billion by 2020, even amid concerns it sells counterfeit products

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