With the market of gemstones saturated with lab-grown stones, synthetics, and other imitations, authenticating precious stones is growing increasingly difficult – a factor counterfeit suppliers are taking full advantage of. The potential profits from selling diamonds and other precious stones attract many counterfeit suppliers, resulting in buyer’s loss of confidence. Already, the legitimate diamond market has shrunk by a third over the course of the pandemic.
Aside from counterfeit diamonds, which can be made of materials like Cubic Zirconia (CZ), a rising concern within the gemstone industry is lab-grown diamonds (LGDs) and other man-made stones. These precious stones are grown in labs over the course of several weeks or months, compared to the formation of natural stones which takes many hundreds of millions, or even billions, of years. Although there has been a recent introduction of regulations to force sellers to disclose the origins of their gemstones and diamonds, historically, there has been significant confusion over the origins of precious stones as they are so hard to tell apart.
The most common method of gemstone identification is visual inspection, as it is the least time-consuming and invasive way of quickly giving customers information about the stones. Often, the characteristics of each stone are what identifies them, but for the untrained, it can be exceptionally difficult to pick out a real gemstone from a fake one. The true number of customers who have unknowingly been sold LGDs labelled as naturally-grown diamonds remains unknown.
Although it is harder for fake gemstones to deceive experts such as jewellers and gemologists, counterfeit items are still sold thanks to supply chain insecurity and workarounds to existing anti-counterfeit measures. Gemstone certificates, serial numbers, QR codes and holograms can all be copied or faked, resulting in customers unknowingly purchasing counterfeit gemstones, meaning vast sums of money are being taken away from legitimate producers and sellers.
In order to combat this, Quantum Base has developed a revolutionary new technology to prevent counterfeit items from getting to market. Using the inherent randomness of quantum materials, we are able to create what we call ‘quantum signatures’ – completely unique arrangements of undetectable quantum material. By invisibly imprinting products, components, labels and packaging with our Q-ID® Optical tags, we can ensure the safety and security of the gemstone industry.
Our quantum solution can be implemented quickly and effectively, allowing for existing and new gemstones to be protected by integrating our technology into manufacturing processes. Our solution also allows producers, sellers and customers to instantly verify the authenticity of their diamonds and gemstones using a standard smartphone camera. Thanks to the real-time track-and-trace data, the history and legitimacy of their precious stones can be verified at any point in the supply chain.
Provide collectors, customers and jewellers with the reassurance they deserve by embracing our quantum solution today.
Our leading counterfeit protection solution is helping to build a world without fakes. If you would like to know more about our Q-ID® Optical solution, please get in contact with our team today.