Skip to content

App Launched to Help Consumers Fight Illicit Trade

sibuyit
Oliver Cann, Associate Director, Media Relations, Tel.: +41 79 799 3405 ; E-mail: Oliver.Cann@weforum.org

  • New app launched at the Summit on the Global Agenda 2013 uses social sourcing to help shoppers gauge authenticity of goods
  • The aim is to raise consumer awareness of how illicit trade contributes to conflicts and instability in fragile states
  • Download the app here. More information about the Summit on the Global Agenda 2013 is available here
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 19 November 2013 – A new smartphone application, Should I Buy It?, has been launched to tackle terrorist groups, organized crime networks and traders that benefit from the sale of illicit goods.
The app is an initiative of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Illicit Trade & Organized Crime and allows consumers to detect and verify the authenticity of goods before purchase. Crowdsourcing techniques are used to build consumer reports on the authenticity, price and quality of goods as well as accurate geolocation and vendor information.
Illicit trade is a major contributor to discrepancies in wealth between the developing and developed world, fuels conflicts and destabilizes fragile states. It also hinders economic development, institution-building, human rights and the rule of law, and supports corrupt practices among government officials and private citizens alike.
“By raising awareness of the problem of counterfeiting and illicit trade, this app shows how every person can make a difference,” said Martina Gmür, Senior Director, Head of the Network of Global Agenda Councils, World Economic Forum.
“This app brings the problem closer to our daily lives. Each of us, as responsible customers, can help combat the profits of illicit trade and organized crime,” said Adam Blackwell, Secretary for Multidimensional Security, Organization of American States and a Chairman of the Global Agenda Council on Illicit Trade & Organized Crime.
Should I Buy It? supports the Council’s endeavour to develop a digital identity framework in which individuals, organizations, services and devices can trust each other and authenticate their digital identities to address certain urgent issues related to cyber security in general, and illicit trade in particular, and WISeKey is proud to be part of this development,” said Carlos Moreira, Chief Executive of WISeKey and a member of the Global Agenda Council on Illicit Trade & Organized Crime.
The first release of the application is available via the iTunes app store, and the public can access reports via a Facebook page.
The Co-Chairs of the Summit on the Global Agenda 2013 are Nasser Ahmed AlSowaidi, Chairman, Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED), United Arab Emirates, and Sultan Saeed Nasser Al Mansouri, Minister of Economy of the United Arab Emirates.
World Economic Forum announcement:
http://www.weforum.org/news/app-launched-help-consumers-fight-illicit-trade

Notes to Editors
The Host broadcaster for the Summit is Abu Dhabi Media.
Download the Apphttp://www.shouldibuyit.net/

Everything
 about this year’s Summit: http://www.weforum.org/events/summit-global-agenda

View the best pictures from the Summit on Flickr at http://wef.ch/gac13pix

Follow the Forum on Twitter at http://wef.ch/twitter and key quotes from the Summithttp://wef.ch/livetweet

Twitter users, please use the hashtag #globalagenda for all tweets about the event and #WEF about the Forum
Follow tweets from participants on our twitter list at https://twitter.com/davos/lists/gac13

Live stream of sessions: http://wef.ch/live

Become a fan of the Forum on Facebook at http://wef.ch/facebook

Watch sessions on demand on YouTube at http://wef.ch/youtube

Read insights from our guest bloggers on the Forumbloghttp://wef.ch/blog

Subscribe to our News Releaseshttp://wef.ch/news
 

Tags: World Economic Forum