EU trade mark dispute: FRAUD FIGHTERS

EU trade mark dispute: FRAUD FIGHTERS

On 26 March, the General Court of the European Union (GCEU) ruled in case T-314/24 on a dispute concerning the international trade mark FRAUD FIGHTERS.

In 2023, the Hungarian company Seon Technologies designated the European Union with the International Bureau of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) for the international word mark FRAUD FIGHTERS (No. 1727782). The trade mark covered goods and services in Classes 9, 42 and 45, including encryption, authentication, privacy and anti-malware software (Class 9). It also covered anti-spamming services, design and development of electronic data and computer security services in Class 42, and information consultancy services relating to security in Class 45.

Both the examiner and the Board of Appeal of the EUIPO refused the application on the grounds that the mark had a sufficiently close relationship with the goods and services in question to make it descriptive and therefore devoid of any distinctive character. Seon Technologies appealed to the GCEU, which emphasised that most of the goods and services concerned are aimed at cybersecurity specialists, who have a high level of attention and understanding within the industry. This meant that the descriptive character of the mark had to be assessed from the point of view of a well-informed professional public.

With regard to grammatical and semantic interpretation, the Court defined 'fraud' as 'deliberate deception' and 'fighters' as 'those who fight' and concluded that the combination 'FRAUD FIGHTERS' would be understood by the relevant public as a simple reference to those who fight fraud. Thus, it reinforced the argument that the expression directly described the services offered, such as software and security services dedicated to the fight against fraud. As a result, the General Court dismissed the Hungarian company’s appeal.