Quickly detect genuine and fake goods through barcodes

Barcode(Barcode)and meaning

All types of goods circulating on the market need to have barcodes. Barcodes are also like the “identity cards” of goods, helping buyers quickly and accurately distinguish different types of goods.

The barcode of a product consists of two parts: the product code for human identification; the barcode for computers and scanners to read and put into the system management.

Barcodes have two common standards: UPC-A standard and EAN standard.

UPC-A standard is 100% American; this standard is exclusively for the Canadian and American markets.

EAN standard: used for European, Asian markets and many other countries.

In Vietnam, most goods on the market apply the EAN barcode standard of the International Item Numbering Organization (EAN International) with 13 numbers, divided into 4 groups:

Group 1: From left to right, the first three digits are the country (territory) code.

Group 2: The next four digits are the business code.

Group 3: The next five digits are the product code.

Group 4: The last number (on the right) is the check digit.

• Why can barcodes help check and distinguish genuine and fake goods?

• • Barcodes are not invented by businesses but must be registered and licensed by the GS1 barcode organization. Businesses that do not register barcodes are not doing business transparently.

    Good barcode quality means that the barcode printed on the packaging is easy to recognize and read quickly. The barcode is the symbol of that product, a good product has a good, complete label.
    • A reliable product must have complete and clear product information and business information.
  • How to calculate EAN-13 barcode check digit

• • Barcodes come in two varieties: 8-digit and 13-digit, both of which are identified in the same way.

  • The simple way to remember is "even times three plus odd" then add the last number, if the sum ends in 0 then it is real, if not 0 then it is fake.

  • First, to know the origin of the item just look at the first 3 digits of the barcode. For example: the first 3 digits are 893 this item is made in Vietnam;If the barcode starts with 690,691,692,693, it is Chinese; 880 is Korean; 885 is Thai......

• Next,Once you know the origin, the way to check if the product is real or fake is to take the sum of the even numbers multiplied by 3 plus the sum of the odd numbers (except the 13th number - this is the number to check and compare).

• Example: How to calculate Korean barcode (880)

  Sum of odd numbers (except the last number): A=8+0+0+3+5+4 = 20

  Sum of even numbers: B=8+9+1+3+0+2=23

  We take: C = A + B*3 = 20+ 23*3= 109

  Then take this number and add it to the 13th number. If this number ends in 0, it is genuine. If the end of this sum is different from 0, it is definitely fake.

  D= C + 1 (the number in the last position) = 109+1=120, this number ends with 0, I can conclude that this is genuine.

• Save the country barcode table to your phone for easy checking when shopping.

Some issues to note:

Barcodes should be used to check and compare the accuracy of information printed on the product when you feel uncertain. For products that do not have “Made in..., Made by...” or are printed in an unreadable national language, using barcodes to identify information is essential.

However, nothing is absolute. In reality, with increasingly sophisticated technology, many types of goods are counterfeited and imitated "from head to toe" without missing any detail, and barcodes are no exception.

Therefore, in addition to barcodes, when checking goods, we need to pay attention to other factors such as checking invoices, documents, anti-counterfeit stamps, Vietnamese sub-label information for imported goods, product appearance, glossiness, beauty, sharpness of borders, logos, packaging, content, layout, product information must be recorded in detail and clearly.