My best friend always joked that if I had to start a career it should definitely be as a femme fatale! A few months later I found myself in the middle of a scandal involving Malaysia fake bag dealers. It was a full blown umbrella of chaos! Contraband and smuggled products being sold at exorbitant prices. It felt like a nightmare.
I was fairly familiar with the art of deception, but I was new to the modus operandi of sellers of counterfeit goods in Malaysia. It seemed to be the modus operandi of the criminals who had made a home in the backstreets of Kuala Lumpur. They were hawking their wares in broad daylight, with impunity. The shady network seemed to be in cahoots with local law enforcement.
I had stumbled upon the ring of fraudsters by accident, while stopped at a red light. A suspicious looking bee line of people had walked by, clearly on their way to exchange something. After doing some more digging I soon realized that they were dealing in fake bags. The amount of money that they moving was huge. So I asked myself, what am I going to do now?
That’s when I decided that a femme fatale was in order! I brushed up on my cunning and swindling skills and went undercover. I was determined to break the ring. It was an incredibly risky mission and even the slightest mistake could’ve cost me my life.
I started to haggle for different bags and eventually caught the attention of the boss of the counterfeiters. I became a regular fixture at their shady gatherings. After weeks of playing the part of an unwitting victim, I had managed to get hold of hundreds of fake bags. I then shared the details of the criminal activities with the authorities.
The news of my heroics spread like wildfire and so did illegal manufacturers and dealers of fake bags in Malaysia. Businesses of all shapes and sizes cracked down on fake handbags and fraudulent sales people. Many unscrupulous sellers are now behind bars because of it! People in Malaysia are safer and my career as femme fatale is gaining more traction than I ever could have imagined.
My involvement with fake bag culture in Malaysia shaped my decision to explore the impact of counterfeiting in other parts of the world. I travel to other countries to help uncover the magnitude of the counterfeit industry and explore the possible implications it can have on a country’s poorest of citizens. I’m determined to use my newfound knowledge to better the lives of all those involved.
As part of the battle against counterfeiting in Malaysia and beyond I often go undercover. I do so by attending counterfeit-buying events and try to blend in as much as possible. It’s also worth noting that building a network of people who are genuinely interested in truth and justice is essential to succeed as a femme fatale. I’ve made some great connections along the way, and I would not have been able to uncover and dismantle the counterfeit market without their help.
I also use technology to uncover fake bags. I Internet sleuth, using social media to spot false bags, or using special software to scan websites for illegally sold products. I’ve become a vocal advocate for people’s rights to buy genuine and undamaged handbags and I’m also raising awareness through branding activities and blogging. Counterfeiting may be an ever increasing cause of concern, but I’m using my skills to take it on and I’m certain I will make a difference.