Hidden Links: Facilitating Criminal Activities While Exploiting E-Commerce - Jan 2026
Hidden Links: Facilitating Criminal Activities While Exploiting E-Commerce examines a rapidly growing and increasingly sophisticated form of online criminality linked to the trafficking of counterfeit goods. As digital marketplaces continue to expand and third-party sellers account for a significant share of global e-commerce, counterfeiters have adapted their practices, moving decisively from physical markets to online platforms.
In response to this shift, e-commerce platforms and brand owners have invested heavily in automated detection tools, including image recognition and keyword-based filters, to identify and remove listings offering counterfeit goods. However, as these safeguards have become more effective, criminal actors have refined their techniques to circumvent them. One of the most deceptive and challenging methods to counter is the use of so-called hidden links.
Hidden links are e-commerce listings that appear to offer legitimate generic products but in reality function as gateways for the sale of counterfeit goods. Because such listings do not display infringing images or keywords, they frequently evade traditional detection mechanisms, allowing illicit trade to persist largely undetected.
This publication explores how hidden links operate, the actors involved, and the ecosystems that enable their dissemination, including the role of trusted affiliates, influencers, and closed online communities. It highlights how social media platforms and external websites are used to amplify these links, often outpacing enforcement efforts once listings become publicly known.
Building on this analysis, the report proposes concrete strategies to address this evolving threat. These include the development of AI-enabled tools capable of simulating test purchases to identify discrepancies between advertised and delivered goods, as well as strengthened cooperation between e-commerce platforms, social media companies, brand owners, and law enforcement authorities. By disrupting the communication channels that allow hidden links to proliferate and leveraging technological innovation, more effective and coordinated responses to online counterfeiting can be achieved.
