Supply chain issues and inflation fuel billion-dollar black market

Scammers sell everything from fake handbags to fake electronics, but now, they’re getting creative, and it could become deadly, according to Customs and Border Protection. Experts say that people are pawning off fake alcohol to unsuspecting customers because of supply chain delays and inflation. 

"Whenever consumer demand begins to exceed the supply, you tend to have the black markets looking to capitalize on that," Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of America Executive Vice President of Communications and Marketing Michael Bilello said. 

In the last fiscal year, Customs and Border Protection seized over $3.3 billion worth of fake goods, including things like fake pharmaceuticals, shoes and electronics. Fake liquors were among the items seized. A large number of these items come from China.