A pivotal moment in the history of IIPCIC was the launch of the first online training curriculum entitled: "The Investigation of Transnational Organized Intellectual Property Crime" (level 1).

A global team of subject-matter experts identified the seven key topics that would become the building blocks necessary to prepare law enforcement and other partners to effectively fight IP crime on an international level.

Following the success of the introductory curriculum, the IIPCIC Intermediate Curriculum: "The Investigation of Transnational Organized Intellectual Property Crime" (level 2) was launched.

These seven modules were developed for investigators who would like to consolidate their knowledge of IP crime and actively pursue counterfeiting and piracy cases.

IIPCIC's first Multilingual Learning Management System (LMS) was launched to meet a growing demand for global online access to our training materials in multiple languages.

Our core modules have since been translated into the four INTERPOL official languages – Arabic, English, French, and Spanish – and subsequently Mandarin and Portuguese.

The INTERPOL Mentoring Programme was co-hosted by IIPCIC and serves to extend the reach of the IIPCIC curriculum. In a train-the-trainer framework, law enforcement officers from Africa and Asia completed the IIPCIC curriculum prior to gathering at the INTERPOL Headquarters in Lyon, France in 2013 to attend lectures and workshops delivered by INTERPOL officers and subject-matter experts from the public and private sectors. In addition to gaining expertise for the benefit of their national administrations, participants built long-lasting networks with their peers in the region, ultimately fostering the sharing of best practices and cross-border cooperation.

Since then more than 150 officers representing law enforcement agencies in Africa, Asia, Europe, South America, and the Middle East & North Africa, have graduated from the various editions of the Mentoring Programme to become IIPCIC National Coordinators.

Graduates from our Mentoring Programmes for Africa and Asia subsequently attended the first IIPCIC Advanced Level Classroom Training, which took place in 2013 in Dublin, Ireland. This training extended the knowledge the graduates gained from the online IIPCIC Introductory and Intermediate Curriculums and further explored their role as IIPCIC National Coordinators, which was introduced to promote IP crime training and facilitate access to IIPCIC on a local level.

A subsequent session took place in Hanoi, Vietnam for the successful graduates of the Mentoring Programme for Latin America, all of whom became IIPCIC National Coordinators, and went on to promote IIPCIC at regional law enforcement training academies.

Schneider Electric Launches first brand-centric anti-counterfeiting course for International IP Crime Investigators College.

Stopping the distribution of counterfeit products is a global concern and a priority for Schneider Electric. The use of these products can have serious consequences for consumers and businesses jeopardizing the safety of people and property," said Tracy Garner, Manager, Anti-Counterfeiting & Unauthorized Distribution, Schneider Electric. “The opportunity to develop this course for the International IP Crime Investigators College gives us the reach of INTERPOL and UL – allowing Schneider Electric to train customs and other authorities all over the world, significantly increasing the visibility of this issue."

Following the success of the 2013 Mentoring Programmes, INTERPOL and IIPCIC collaborated once again to provide train-the-trainer sessions for nearly 50 law enforcement officials from 21 countries throughout Latin America and the Middle East & North Africa.

Participants successfully completed the Introductory and Intermediate Curriculums online before attending in-person training at the INTERPOL Headquarters in Lyon, marking the inception of IIPCIC training being delivered as part of a blended-learning session in Spanish and Arabic.

As a component to completing their final year of training, recruits from Chile’s Escuela Nacional de Investigaciones Policiales (ESCIPOL) successfully completed the IIPCIC Introductory and Intermediate Curriculums on IP crime investigations from an international perspective. Since all recruits completed the courses within the required timeframe, they received their IIPCIC certificate in an unprecedented ceremony, facilitated by their trainers, and attended by representatives from IIPCIC and INTERPOL.

Since 2014, IIPCIC has been celebrating excellence, innovation and performance across the IP and brand protection communities around the world. Our annual awards are designed to acknowledge and reward those making a significant impact with innovative and effective approaches to fighting IP crime in this global and very challenging environment.

The first award celebrated the Young Inventor, Adeeb Sulaiman Mohammed E. Alblooshi, from the United Arab Emirates, whose invention of a prosthetic limb for his father was recognized at the 8th International Law Enforcement IP Crime Conference held in Hanoi, Vietnam.

This eight-module advanced level curriculum explores Investigating Online Counterfeiting and Piracy. The learning assumes that students are familiar with the Internet and online terminology. It is also assumes that students will be aware of the nature and extent of piracy, and the trafficking of counterfeit and pirated goods through the Internet. This advanced course examines online piracy investigations and counterfeiting to provide students the knowledge and skills required to successfully lead online criminal investigations.

This was the first IIPCIC produced online authentication guide providing global law enforcement with a reference tool to inform future IP investigations regarding Levi's products.

A significant achievement for IIPCIC was the launch of the "IIPCIC Specialized Curriculum for Customs: Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Enforcement for Customs Officers". Developed in collaboration with the World Customs Organization (WCO), this eight-module series provides Customs officers from around the world with the knowledge they need to confidently approach the detection and interdiction of illicit goods crossing international borders.

This series covers important topics like the sharing of Customs best practices, international supply chain management, government agency cooperation, private sector partnerships, risk management, and legal proceedings in IPR cases. These topics and others serve to inform Customs officers and promote proven strategies for interdicting IP crime on an international stage.

The International IP Crime Investigators College recognized Marjorie Ottenville from U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Austin Police Department’s Criminal Conspiracy Team for their efforts in increasing educational opportunities, awareness and communication between the public and private sectors. IIPCIC believes their commitment serves as a powerful example of the vital role of public/private sector partnerships in the fight against transnational IP Crime.

The recipients received their IPCIC Outstanding Public and Private Sector Partnership Awards during the 2017 International Law Enforcement IP Crime Conference which was held from 28 to 29 August 2017 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.

To meet a growing demand for practical training on the latest IP crime trends, IIPCIC delivered its first instructor-led pre-conference workshop prior to the 12th Annual IP Crime Conference in Dubai. The workshop titled, "IIPCIC Online Investigative Techniques" was facilitated by Mike Hill, UL's Online Investigations Manager, and Graeme Grant Director of Anti-Piracy for the IFPI. The workshop delivered specialized training in the use of open-source intelligence tools (OSINT) to conduct IP related online investigations. The 55 attendees included law enforcement officers from Dubai police, Rak Police and INTERPOL as well as other law enforcement agencies and private sector investigators.

Due to the success of this workshop, IIPCIC hosts annual instructor-led workshops at the International Law Enforcement IP Crime Conference providing conference attendees with access to subject-matter experts who hold the latest information on IP crime trends and enforcement best practices.

IIPCIC and INTERPOL co-hosted the first "multi-regional" Mentoring Programme, which gathered 16 participants from nine countries.

Having previously completed the IIPCIC Introductory and Intermediate Curriculums online, participants met in person with subject-matter-experts from the public and private sector to learn about regional initiatives to combat counterfeiting and piracy, and develop strategies for integrating IIPCIC training into regional law enforcement training academies.

IIPCIC Specialized Curriculum for IP Prosecutors: Investigating, Preparing, and Prosecuting Intellectual Property Cases.

Developed by a team of transnational subject matter experts, this highly anticipated nine-module series was designed specifically for law enforcement officials and IP prosecutors. It covers the different types of intellectual property crimes with an emphasis on the elements of proof required to successfully prosecute criminal cases on copyright, trademark, trade secret, and patent violations.

This series also addresses the practical aspects of building a strong case during the investigative stage of proceedings, with a focus on collection and maintenance of evidence, as well as best practices and strategies for IP prosecutors. All of this is done with real-world case studies and engaging scenarios to help the learner interact in a meaningful way with the information.

Cryptocurrency is attracting the attention of the criminal mind. With the evolution of technology, digital assets providing anonymity are gaining popularity amongst criminals and illegal organizations. Following the success of the first workshop in 2018, IIPCIC was proud to deliver its newest workshop: “An Introduction to the Future of the Criminal Mind", on October 21st, 2019 at the Cape Town IP Crime Conference.

This four-hour instructor-led training event provided the attendees with an introduction to this innovative new world of digital assets and their anonymity. Discussions and training provided an understanding of cryptocurrency and related crime, problems and challenges faced by law enforcement agencies, and strategies for officers in combating criminal activity within this new technological world.

Based on a growing demand from our learners and in collaboration with INTERPOL’s Capacity Building and Training (CBT) Sub Directorate, the IIPCIC Workshop titled "Cryptocurrency: An Introduction to the Future of the Criminal Mind", was converted into a three-part webinar series – the recordings of which are freely available to all IIPCIC registered learners on iipcic.org.

Since then, IIPCIC Webinars have been a huge success – one of which counted the highest number of listeners that any INTERPOL-led webinar has had to date!

IIPCIC delivered its first Regional Training workshop at the 13th International Law Enforcement IP Crime Conference in Cape Town, South Africa. Police training directors and senior representatives from 30 countries across Africa attended the workshop which sought to ensure that law enforcement officers on the frontlines and in remote locations have access to IP training.

In 2019, the Police Chiefs Cooperation Organizations for Southern Africa and East Africa (SARPCCO and EAPCCO) embedded the IIPCIC training into national police college curriculums. During the 2019 INTERPOL Heads of National Central Bureaus (NCBs) Meeting, senior police leaders from the Middle East and North Africa recommended police institutions in their region to also adopt this model as exemplified by the Dubai Police Academy and their Young Leaders Programme. Soon, Colombia was the first country to require completion of the IIPCIC curriculum on a national level, resulting in a significant increase in enrollments.

Closer Cooperation with Police Academies

We work in close cooperation with national police training institutions around the world. This systematic approach ensures police trainers are on-hand to provide practical tips and advice to students learning about IP investigations within their local legislative framework. The first police institution to integrate IIPCIC online courses officially into their existing structure was the Zhejiang Police College in Hangzhou, which was nominated by the Ministry of Public Security, People’s Republic of China, to be the national point of contact between IIPCIC and Chinese law enforcement officers. Since then, many other police and law enforcement training academies and staff colleges around the world, from Andorra to Zimbabwe, have followed suit.

IIPCIC launched its new LMS interface. This new learner experience is more personal, intelligent, engaging and user friendly for mobile devices.

The enhanced dashboard includes new features such as:

• Latest IIPCIC news
• An inbox containing course notifications and other IIPCIC communications
• Polls and resources as they become available
• Quick accesses to featured courses
• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

IIPCIC is committed to leading IP education with leading edge technology!

In January of 2020, IIPCIC was honored to be included in the 2020 US Department of Homeland Security Report to the President titled, “Combatting Trafficking in Counterfeit and Pirated Goods.” The International IP Crime Investigators College (IIPCIC) was acknowledged as a top international resource for IP education and anti-counterfeiting information. See page 52 of the report from the link below: