Intellectual property (IP) theft soared worldwide last year, says Gieschen Consultancy, a Canadian security counterfeit intelligence analysis firm.
Gieschen Consultancy says the 2005 DOPIP Global Counterfeit and Piracy report indicates IP theft has grown to represent 40% of all counterfeit activity.
More than 3 703 incidents valued at over $3 trillion were analysed from 133 countries.
Heading the list of top 25 brands counterfeited worldwide last year was Microsoft, followed by design labels such as Louis Vuitton, Nike, Gucci and Adidas. Canon and Nokia were also among the brands most counterfeited.
According to the report, the most popular items to counterfeit were financial instruments, with 1 435 incidents worth $3.254 trillion reported. Entertainment and software were second on the list, with 706 incidents worth $695 million reported last year.
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