IP police offer advertisers list of infringing websites

Managing IP is part of Legal Benchmarking Limited, 1-2 Paris Gardens, London, SE1 8ND

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2025

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

IP police offer advertisers list of infringing websites

The IP crime unit within the City of London Police has created a list of copyright-infringing websites it wants online advertisers to avoid

It has launched the Infringing Website List (IWL) following a three-month pilot involvingmusic industry groups IFPI and BPI, the Federation Against Copyright Theft, the Publishers Association, and online advertising industry groups ISBA, IPA and IAB UK.

The initiative is designed to attack the revenue sources of the businesses behind infringing sites.

Andy Fyfe, head of the Police IP Crime Unit, said: “If an advert from an established brand appears on an infringing website not only does it lend the site a look of legitimacy, but inadvertently the brand and advertiser are funding online crime. Therefore the IWL also serves as a safety tool, ensuring the reputation of advertisers and brands are not discredited through association with illegal websites.”

The Unit says that the list of websites is an online portal of sites identified by the creative industries and verified by the police that can be used by advertisers and agencies when they are deciding where to place their adverts.

The IWL was today the subject of a freedom of information request, with the police asked to reveal which websites have so far been removed from the List, as result of, for example, compliance with copyright laws.

The European Commission is trying to encourage brand owners and advertisers to develop a similar EU-wide list. In an interview with Managing IP, Kerstin Jorna, head of the IP team within DG Internal Market, said she wanted her officials to tackle the business models used by copyright infringers.

“In 2014 we want to follow the money,” she said.

But not all brand owners have been quick to support the Commission’s plans for an MOU to create what would effectively be a blacklist of IP-infringing sites. The Commission says that while some gave it a positive reaction at the November meeting, others had either questioned the importance of the problem for them in particular or had been unaware of the problem.

more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

Deborah Kirk discusses why IP and technology have become central pillars in transactions and explains why clients need practically minded lawyers
IP STARS, Managing IP’s accreditation title, reveals its latest rankings for patent work, including which firms are moving up
Leaders at US law firms explain what attorneys can learn from AI cases involving Meta and Anthropic, and why the outcomes could guide litigation strategies
Attorneys reveal the trademark and copyright trends they’ve noticed within the first half of 2025
Senior leaders at TE Connectivity and Clarivate explain how they see the future of innovation
A new action filed by Nokia against Asus and a landmark ruling on counterfeits by South Africa’s Supreme Court were also among the top talking points
Counsel explain how they’re navigating patent prosecution matters and highlight key takeaways from Federal Circuit cases
A partner who joined Fenwick alongside two others explains what drew her to the firm and her hopes for growth in Boston
The England and Wales High Court has granted Kirkland & Ellis client Samsung interim declaratory relief in its ongoing FRAND dispute with ZTE
A UDRP decision that found in favour of a small business in a domain name dispute could encourage more businesses to take a stand in ‘David v Goliath’ cases
Gift this article