Counterfeiters, "Big Brother" is watching you

The fight against fakes

The entire RFID system comprising a reader, encrypted software and a tag © G. & E. Bouille SA

The RFID tag that can be easily concealed in a full case or skeleton case © G. & E. Bouille SA

Watch with an invisible and non-removable RFID tag embedded in its case © G. & E. Bouille SA

In a few months’ time, counterfeiters will have to contend with a new enemy: the RFID tag. Embedded in its case, this electronic microchip will be like an ID card for the watch. It can store data such as the series number and the name of the salesperson or owner. Already, several companies are showing a close interest in this new system.

Michel Jeannot and Louis Nardin / BIPH

The watch industry is showing a keen interest in a new high-tech weapon in the war on fakes and the grey market: the Radio-Frequency IDentification tag (or transponder). This tiny device makes it possible to track a watch indefinitely and with complete certainty.

This pioneering system comprises a low-frequency chip that is hermetically embedded in the watch case. It can store up to 2kb of data that can only be scanned by a dedicated reader. This reader is linked to a computer running software, developed for or by the client-brand, that deciphers and gives access to the information. Data is transferred using an encrypted and secure protocol.

A tiny fortress

Totally error-proof and theoretically unlimited in time, the system incorporates 11 security levels, which is as many as the chip in a bank card. It was jointly developed by the case manufacturer Bouille SA (Neuchâtel/Switzerland) and MBBS SA (Cortaillod, NE/Switzerland), a leader in low-frequency embedded tags. The two companies have formed a partnership that gives Bouille SA exclusive distribution rights for RFID tags for watches. The tags are manufactured to order and in limited quantities, thereby ensuring total control of production.

Because the client-brand defines what information will be stored on the tag, it can also segment access to data, and decide if a tag is read-only, write-only or read-write. "An RFID tag is like an identity card," explained Grégoire Bouille, managing director of Bouille SA. "It can store a host of information, such as the name of the watchmaker who assembled the watch, the buyer’s name or the retailer’s address. It can also record operations such as an after-sales service or when the strap was changed. Since announcing this new system, three major companies, all serious victims of counterfeiting, have contacted us and several other brands have made enquiries." A leading luxury brand has already carried out a full-scale trial and will shortly decide whether to go ahead with the system.

Too perfect?

The RFID tag could, in the long run, prove invaluable in certifying a watch’s origin and authenticity. The Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry (FH) is closely following developments. Meanwhile, the Swiss Federal Customs Administration believes the system "could provide a solution to combat parallel networks and counterfeiting" and is giving the project its support. While the federal authorities consider the dual problem of counterfeiting and stolen goods, the watch industry sees this innovation as a means to drastically reduce the risk of counterfeiting and put a spoke in the wheel of illegitimate sales of genuine watches (the grey market).

Ironically, the RFID tag’s total reliability could turn out to be its weakness. Numerous brands, subsidiaries and retailers are happy to use the grey market to shift unsold stock. Strict control of this channel would deprive them of a means of discreetly getting rid of surplus inventory. The only way to oblige them to use RFID tags would be for the majority of brands to lead the way. Which isn’t yet the case. The fact remains that the widespread adoption, or not, of controls of this type will reveal just how ethical brands really are. And how determined they are to combat counterfeiting… at the risk of cutting themselves off from the grey market. ■

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