I am working on an article about an apparent new triple threat from the CN counterfeiters... As if the Chinese counterfeit coins in fake PCGS slabs isn’t bad enough, now there appears to be a fake Chinese PCGS website to verify them… A friend alerted me to the following listing on the Bay this past week: The listing included these interesting other images: The seller had ended the listing based on being told it is a counterfeit, and I started a review to try to determine what was going on here! So, I started with the “PCGS” slab and some quick checks. Using my on-line barcode scanner I checked the front barcode; like many similar bad slabs, the barcode was gibberish and would not scan. Next, I went to the PCGS website to check the noted cert number: So, another bad sign, that cert # “was not found”. So, my next step was to try to read the reverse label QR code. And just a note, many of the previous counterfeits we have documented similar to this one had a QR code that read the cert # correctly but noted the genuine PCGS CN site. A previous example read like this: And then this one: Different result than expected- I do NOT recommend readers going to the site shown, but if you did this is what comes up: WOW, now we have something apparently new to be concerned about with these… I did notify my contacts at PCGS for a heads-up; they stated they are now aware and reviewing the situation. So now you can verify your CN counterfeit coin in a fake CN "PCGS" slab on their new CN counterfeit website and see the image of the fake- what will they think of next??? Best, Jack.
While scary, it was inevitable. It was only a matter of time that they figured out if you verify a valid number on the PCGS site, the coin shown will look different. Easy solution? Make your own website! Thanks for doing the important research on this stuff!
We're lucky they're so lazy. They devoted effort into making the QR code work but the barcode is still gibberish. I see a couple glaring problems on the label too but I'm not sure if I should point them out.
2nd example found today- 1873-CC Trade. Obv label/ barcode similar to the 1st. Rev QR code scans to the counterfeit PCGS site which is still down today...
The only way to force ebay to do something about this is like how LVMH sued ebay on counterfeit handbags. Thankfully as counterfeiters are using PCGS - they have set themselves up for failure. Heck, China is known to even have fake Apple store so this is not a surprise. With a population of more than 1 billion - there are crooks that are out there to make a quick buck. Not even capital punishment will deter them. The only way out is vigilance and buying from reputable dealers.
