Pharmaceutical counterfeiting has serious consequences for healthcare consumers and providers as well as pharmaceutical companies. Fortunately, new techniques have been developed for distinguishing genuine branded products from the copies.
The counterfeiting of pharmaceuticals is a major cause of lost revenue for pharmaceutical companies and a threat to the health of pharmaceutical consumers, so it is vital that pharmaceutical manufacturers deploy the latest authentication systems to protect their brands from the counterfeiters.
Custom solutions
ARmark Authentication Technologies LLC develops custom authentication systems for use across a wide variety of pharmaceutical applications, including on-tablet, in-packaging and on-label applications for the protection of pharmaceutical products. ARmark develops and manufactures microscopic covert markers that can be applied directly to pharmaceutical pills and tablets, and incorporated into packaging materials, such as plastic bottles, films and labels. These markers are designed to aid brand protection, product surety and risk mitigation to fight global counterfeiting. They can have a major impact on the authentication and verification of goods, and manage brand theft, trademark infringement, piracy, counterfeiting and forgery.
Pharmaceutical companies seeking a product surety/brand protection solution can take advantage of ARmark’s covert markers, which can be customised to deliver specific benefits for pharmaceutical brand owners searching for authentication solutions. These specialised markers:
- Are available in pharmaceutical excipient materials for on-tablet authentication
- Are easily integrated into existing manufacturing processes
- Offer infinite possibilities for unique coding – numbers, patterns, text, bar codes and logos
- Deliver information – batch numbers, distribution sites, product codes and so on
- Are nearly impossible to replicate or reverse engineer
- Provide buried levels of security – can be hidden within multiple levels of product construction
- Are compatible with other covert/overt identification technologies
- Offer ‘inside-outside’ product verification – for example, within the product, on the product or on the packaging
- Function in a broad range of environments (hot/cold temperatures, for example)
- Can be identified using ARvision authentication systems digital micro-imaging hardware with customisable software programs or simple microscopy
Complete protection
For complete anti-counterfeiting protection, ARmark has partnered with Security and Risk Management Group LLC, which provides a global network of former FBI agents, and local, state and federal law enforcement professionals for:
- Investigations and enforcement – intelligence gathering, undercover surveillance, case analysis, law enforcement liaison, search and seizure, and internet monitoring
- Consulting – strategic assessment, threat risk analysis and gap analysis
- Supply chain security – production, distribution, and sales
- Education, awareness and prevention
ARmark Authentication Technologies is a member of the North American Security Products Organization, the Document Security Alliance, the International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition, the Counterfeiting Intelligence Bureau, the Coalition Against Counterfeiting and Piracy, and the International Authentication Association.