On 30 September 2025, the World Customs Organization (WCO) Secretary General (SG) delivered the keynote address at the 18th International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) Conference on Intellectual Property (IP) crime, stating that “Only by working together can we enhance intelligence sharing, build capacities, and prevent counterfeit and dangerous goods from moving through the global trade ecosystem. We do all these things to achieve the ultimate goal of protecting society.”
This year’s conference, “Working in Partnership to Advance Safety and Security,” served as a clear call to action for all stakeholders to strengthen collaboration in tackling IP crime. The event brought together law enforcement agencies, policymakers, rights holders, industry representatives, and key partners in this critical arena.
Call for strong partnerships and sharing of data to uphold the integrity of trade
In his keynote address, the SG emphasised that Customs and Police alone cannot succeed in combating IP crimes. Effective action requires close cooperation among governments, law enforcement agencies, international organisations, the private sector, and academia to enhance intelligence sharing, build capacities, and prevent counterfeit and dangerous goods from entering the market.
The SG highlighted that criminal networks operated across borders, and therefore, our response must also do so. The SG emphasised the importance of strengthening partnerships to protect societies, safeguard public health, and maintain the integrity of trade.
The SG emphasised the importance of data in driving action. Through analysis of data submitted by members to the Customs Enforcement Network (CEN), the WCO has seen a significant increase in seizures of items in violation of IP rights. For comparison, Customs administrations reported the seizure of 166 million counterfeit items in 2004. By 2024, this figure had increased by 22%, or nearly 200 million.
Of particular concern is the dominance of illicit medicines in these figures, which alone accounted for more than 74% of the reported seizures, numbering 148 million items. If these medicines had reached the wider public, this would have had a direct impact on the health and safety of citizens.
To contribute to combating IP crime, the WCO has undertaken joint operations with INTERPOL, which have provided invaluable data to inform the way forward in understanding the risks, trends, and the role of enforcement in reducing this type of crime. Operation STOP and Operation PANGEA are recent examples of how customs intelligence, law enforcement capabilities and cross-border cooperation have been used to target counterfeit and illicit medicines.
The SG concluded his remarks by asserting that this fight is not just about IP, it is about protecting people, safeguarding economies, and upholding confidence in the global trading system.
WCO and INTERPOL are building on cooperation
On the sidelines of the Conference, the SG held a bilateral meeting with the INTERPOL SG to review ongoing cooperation and discuss topics of mutual interest, including exploring new avenues for collaboration.
The bilateral meeting reaffirmed the excellent relationship between WCO and INTERPOL across multiple areas.
Both organisations emphasised the importance of sustaining this high level of cooperation, as demonstrated through the biannual senior management meetings, while continuing to explore new opportunities for joint action.
The WCO continues to focus its efforts on combating IP crime through its work on supply chain integrity, the sharing of intelligence and data, conducting operations to tackle specific IP issues, and capacity building to strengthen members’ abilities to assess and prevent counterfeit products from proliferating in the global trade system. The WCO is committed to ongoing collaboration with Customs and law enforcement to counter threats from IP crime.