Authorities in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City on July 30 caught nearly one million face masks with poor quality or of unclear origins amid the complicated progression of the Covid-19 pandemic in the country.

800,000 face masks of unclear origin in 300 boxes were seized in Hanoi.

In Hanoi, the city’s market surveillance authority and police of Ha Dong district seized nearly 800,000 face masks of unclear origin.

Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Thi Hai, deputy head of Economic Police in Ha Dong district, said the law enforcement would step up efforts to monitor illegal businesses related to face masks of unclear origin and prevent the low quality products from making their way to the market.

Market surveillance authority checked on Nam Anh's products. Photo: DMS.

On the same day, the Vietnam Directorate of Market Surveillance (DMS) seized over 150,000 counterfeit 3M face masks at Nam Anh Equipment Production and Trade company, located at Tan Phu dsitrict, Ho Chi Minh City.

At the company’s production facilities, the authorities identified hundreds of boxes containing face masks labeled as 3M, which is the brand name of US mask manufacturer 3M.

On its website at khautrangnamanh.com, Nam Anh Company says it is one of Vietnam’s leading companies in making and distributing medical face masks for the Vietnamese and foreign markets.

Production of counterfeit 3M face masks at Nam Anh company. Photo: DMS.

However, according to the Vietnam Directorate of Market Surveillance, this is the largest case of intellectual property infringement in Vietnam so far this year.

From July 25 to 29, Vietnamese authorities have searched nearly 900 establishments selling medical equipment, of which over 58,000 face masks of unclear origin were seized.