On the latest episode of the Alan Turing Podcast in partnership with Boss Digital, James is joined by Rachel Jones, Head Dragon (aka Founder & CEO) at SnapDragon Monitoring, a company that is on a mission to fight against fakes to help protect businesses and consumers.

Interview Highlights

“I invented a baby product…and about 8 years into the journey a counterfeit was seized by the customs authorities in Southampton. The idea of a fake baby product, well your blood just runs cold. So actually, it was a real need and necessity that prompted SnapDragon to be set up. I had to learn how to find these fakes and stop them from being sold, and once I had done that for myself, I discovered that there were a number of people in a very similar situation to me… They weren’t sure how to deal with fakes and the only process to deal with them seemed to be expensive and slow.”

So actually, it was a real need and necessity that prompted SnapDragon to be set up.

“I think from the point of view of what I’d been through with Totseat, where we’d had a profitable business and lost everything, I completely understand – and have lived through – the effects that counterfeits can have on a business and on the people involved. This fact that we really understand what people are going through when they have fakes has been a key part of growing SnapDragon.”

So whatever we can do – all of us – to improve people’s computer and digital skills can only be a good thing.

“Your wonderful statistic about computer skills increasing the likelihood of people’s income by 39% is what triggered my interest in supporting the Turing Trust. So whatever we can do – all of us – to improve people’s computer and digital skills can only be a good thing. And what we have seen over the pandemic is a massive increase of folks going online and buying things online and huge numbers of fakes being sold online because actually, those who are inexperienced with online shopping have been gently and sadly coerced into buying things which aren’t the right thing. So I think improving skills in that space is absolutely crucial. And it isn’t just about the young, it’s also about the old who are isolated and trying to get themselves online.”