Horse urine in face cream, animal droppings & skin burns… the gross truth about the fakes lurking in your makeup bag
WITH the country in the grip of a counterfeit epidemic, shoppers are buying cheap, knock-off cosmetics brewed in cement mixers and even containing animal waste and poison.
Fabulous has uncovered the grim reality of fake beauty products — and from the murky warehouses where they are produced to the criminal networks behind them, it is not pretty.
Experts say some could even cause cancer.
Now, a Choose Safe Not Fake campaign by the UK’s Intellectual Property Office is warning of the risks of counterfeit cosmetics after research revealed many consumers are unaware.
More than half of women aged 18 to 30 are using counterfeit beauty products, with around a third of purchases being repeat ones.
Shoppers may not even realise they are buying fakes, according to the IPO’s head of intelligence, Kate Caffery, who describes the figures as “frightening”.
She says: “It is a growing problem. Increased accessibility of counterfeit items via the internet and social media platforms is likely to be a major factor in the rise.
“Perfume is the number one most purchased counterfeit hygiene and beauty item, followed by make-up, skincare and then hair products.”
Counterfeit items are packaged to look identical to branded products, using the same registered trademarks, logos and imaging.
‘Face started to burn’
This is distinct from dupes — cheaper versions of a product that may look similar, but have their own branding.
Some fakes can be very hard to spot.
Model Ophelia Zarewicz thought she had found a bargain when she saw a Laura Mercier tinted moisturiser on eBay for just £15.
The luxury make-up product, loved by stars including Madonna and Cindy Crawford, sells for £42.
Ophelia, 29, says: “When the moisturiser arrived, I didn’t immediately notice any issues with the packaging.
“What did strike me though was the smell. It had a slightly sour odour.
“But I didn’t think too much of it as I was happy to have saved over £25.”
But Ophelia, from Blackheath, South East London, soon regretted her purchase.
“Within ten minutes of putting it on, my face started to burn,” she recalls. “At first it was just a tingle but, before long, it was agony. I felt like my whole head was on fire.
“I quickly got make-up wipes and a cold cloth and tried to cool myself down, but it was really sore for a good few hours.
“It may sound foolish, but I tried it one more time a few days later, just in case my reaction was a one-off. But the same thing happened again.
“I messaged the eBay seller, who was branded as a Laura Mercier ‘reseller’, asking for a refund, but didn’t hear anything back.
“In hindsight, it’s obvious these people just copied the original box to the letter.
“I’ll never, ever buy cosmetics from ‘resellers’ or second-hand sites again. I’ll go straight to the official website or shop.”
Counterfeit beauty
The counterfeiting trade costs the UK economy more than £9billion in lost revenue, along with almost 60,000 jobs and £4billion in unpaid tax, according to the Anti-Counterfeiting Group. And unlike branded products, which go through testing, counterfeits are unregulated.
“It’s a trade controlled by criminals, so the items could contain anything,” explains Kate.
“The idea that it ‘all comes from the same factory’ couldn’t be further from the truth.”
Shocking recent cases include the use of cement mixers to make products.
Some pirated items seized and lab tested by authorities have been found to contain horse urine and animal droppings, with high levels of bacteria.
Others contained toxic metals like lead and mercury, which can impact the reproductive, immune and nervous systems.
Arsenic and beryllium, which have cancer links, were also found.
Dr Angela Tewari, consultant dermatologist and British Skin Foundation spokesperson, says: “It’s important people realise these products can be seriously damaging.
“Exposure to toxic chemicals will often go unnoticed, but they have the potential for serious harm with long-term use.”
It’s important people realise these products can be seriously damaging
Dr Angela Tewari
Kirsty Baxter, an administrator from Leicester, paid £25 for a bumper pack of 7th Heaven face masks on Amazon.
She says: “Usually, the strawberry cream mask retails at £3.98 for one, so I couldn’t resist buying in bulk when it worked out at just £1 per mask.”
But the 34-year-old was horrified when her skin started to react just minutes after applying the product.
She says: “It felt like really bad sunburn, as if my face was swelling. It was so painful, I had tears in my eyes.
“It took a good 24 hours for my skin to return to normal.”
Kirsty went online a few days later, but the page she purchased the product from was no longer available.
“I’m wondering if others also got a counterfeit batch and kicked off,” she says.
“The packaging all looked normal, so I had no reason to believe I was being sold a fake. Plus it was from Amazon so, again, I didn’t think that could happen.
“But hearing how rife it is, I’m now convinced it was a counterfeit product.
“In future, I’ll happily pay full price if it means not going through that again.”
Photos of grotty warehouses where fakes were made, and which have since been raided by enforcement officers, have been shared with us.
The unsanitary rooms and amateur set-ups are a far cry from the clinical environments used by legitimate brands.
Grotty warehouses
Kate says: “The products are made in completely unhygienic warehouses, then passed through the supply chain without being properly sealed or managed, which is dangerous.”
Online marketplaces like TikTok, Amazon and eBay forbid the sale of fakes via their platforms and have “dedicated teams” working with law enforcement worldwide on the issue.
But Kate says they are fighting a losing battle.
“It’s like whack-a-mole. The minute you deal with one, another pops up,” she explains.
Spending on counterfeit goods is the second-highest source of criminal income worldwide after drugs.
And far from being a victimless crime, the fake trade funds other criminal activity, such as people-trafficking, drugs and weapon-smuggling.
Criminal activity
“These criminals don’t build hospitals and schools,” says Phil Lewis, of the Anti-Counterfeiting Group.
“They use the money to seed-fund other criminalities. The same people will use online sales to gain access to buyer identities and banking details, which are then used by global fraudsters.”
The UK is one of the world’s most targeted countries, alongside France, Italy and the US.
And it is not just lotions and potions that are faked.
Nail technician Erin Searle bought a Katie Barnes-branded cuticle tool on eBay for £2.99 — less than a third of the usual £9.99 cost.
‘Choose wisely’
But when it was delivered, Erin, 36, from Fareham, Hants, knew it was not the real deal.
She says: “It was bulky and blunt.
“It was impossible to use safely. I was really shocked.”
The counterfeiter had also sold at least 63 cuticle pushers, which usually retail for around £30, on eBay using Katie Barnes branding — meaning more than £1,800 in lost sales for the company.
Brand owner Katie, 36, says: “It affected our income, but the bigger issue was that it could affect the reputation of our brand.
“We had to put social media posts up advising customers about the counterfeits.”
On top of concerns for businesses, it is the customer that ultimately ends up paying more.
Phil says: “Brands invest a lot of money in prevention to stop counterfeits getting to the market and removing them once they are there.
HOW TO SORT REAL FROM FAKES
FAKE cosmetics can be difficult to spot, but there are some tips for rooting out the rip-offs online.
Kate Caffery says: “Vet the seller. Do they have a returns policy? Have they shared contact details? Are there reviews? What do those say and do they look genuine?
“Look out for giveaways in the details, such as the font. Text may include spelling mistakes or the image might be fuzzy.
“If it seems too good to be true – if something is being sold for considerably cheaper than it should be – then question it.”
An adverse reaction after using a product could also indicate it is a knock-off.
Dr Angela Tewari advises: “If you notice any itching, burning or bumpy eruption, or any swellings on your face, arm or neck, you must stop using the product immediately and report it to the relevant authorities.”
“This eats into profit, leads to job losses and adds to the cost of the product so, in the end, we all pay. The simple message for consumers is, ‘Choose wisely and choose safely’.”
Amazon, TikTok and eBay told Fabulous that the sale of counterfeits is strictly forbidden on their respective platforms.
They each use the latest detection technology to proactively block fake listings.
An Amazon spokesperson said: “If we identify an issue, we act quickly to protect customers and brands, including removing listings and blocking accounts.”
TikTok highlighted its IP Protection Centre, where brands can upload their own intellectual property rights documentation.
And an eBay spokesperson said IP rights owners can use its VeRO Programme to report fake listings, adding: “We will then investigate and take the appropriate action, which may include ending listings and suspending seller accounts.”