We already know in 2021 that masks are going to be an essential part of our lives. We cannot escape it. Amidst this, masks have become a very profitable industry. Thus, many unverified outlets are also emerging, that promises to meet the standard safety qualifications but, in reality, are far away from it.

In the United States, only the N95 marks are considered the right standard of masks. However, fake masks claiming to have the attributes of N95 masks have emerged in American markers putting the lives of citizens at risk.

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Before the pandemic began in 2020, the US custom and borders had seized approximately 14 million fake masks. That is the scale at which these fake masks are spreading. These masks are dangerous because they don’t filter out airborne diseases that N95 masks do.

So, how does one spot these fake face masks? People usually buy facemasks from two sources. They either buy it from websites or market places.

In case one is ordering facemasks from websites, they need to keep an eye out for the authenticity of the website. For example, they should check the quality of the website- whether there are any syntax errors in the website or whether there are any page breaks or things like that. Authentic websites will never have these mistakes on their official websites.

However, if one is buying masks from the market, they need to check for the authenticity badge. Real sellers never put authenticity badges on their products. Moreover, buyers also need to check whether the price is too good to be true.

Besides these indications, buyers should also check for the approval number on their masks that begin with TC.

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In case citizens find a fake face mask, they should report it immediately, to minimise the activity of criminal organisations, capitalising on the pandemic.