Written by Jack Porter - Trainee Underwriter - Casualty

WhAT IS MALICIOUS PRODUCT TAMPERING?

Malicious Product Tampering (MPT) means the actual or threatened intentional, malicious and illegal alteration of the Insureds Products whether in conjunction with a Product Extortion Demand or not that renders it unfit or dangerous for use or consumption or to create such impression to the public.

Therefore, a product does not need to have been tampered with, it is enough if the public believes so. Thus, the threat of MPT may cause serious damage to a company's sales and reputation if managed poorly.

Motives for MPT usually fall into the following categories:

a competitor
a criminal, usually as part of an extortion
political
a disgruntled employee or ex-employee
a consumer making a fraudulent claim or seeking publicity

Crucial differences exist between MPT and accidental product contamination, including:

may be an employee
more newsworthy
more likely to be copycats
perpetrator may never be caught
possible police involvement

The impact of malicious product interference extends far beyond the immediate victims. For companies, the financial repercussions can be staggering, encompassing:

recall costs
legal fees
compensation payouts
damage inflicted
evaporating consumer trust
media scrutiny

Everyone remembers the sewing needles in strawberries incident? Initially an isolated event in Queensland, it was escalated to other states and territories involving multiple tampering events across the country. Only a few instances are believed to be associated with the original event with others believed to be 'copycat' events.

Queensland Health and Police Service led the investigation and response with state and territory agencies and the Government responding with a range of measures, including:

Removing implicated strawberries from sale.
Introducing and strengthening penalties for food tampering.
Imposing stricter conditions for strawberry export.

MALICIOUS PRODUCT TAMPERING

WhAT IS MALICIOUS PRODUCT TAMPERING?

Motives for MPT usually fall into the following categories:

Crucial differences exist between MPT and accidental product contamination, including:

The impact of malicious product interference extends far beyond the immediate victims. For companies, the financial repercussions can be staggering, encompassing:

Queensland Health and Police Service led the investigation and response with state and territory agencies and the Government responding with a range of measures, including:

labelling food & Beverage