It has been learned that the USPTO, at the end of 2025, begun to use an AI-driven program that scans new trademark, patent, design applications, and Declarations of Use (DoUs) to detect fraudulent ones. Indeed, in the US, they had noticed the presence of applications filed on behalf of third parties by unauthorized subjects (fake IP consultants, especially for applications originating from China) or DoUs with bogus specimens. As of the end of April, over 52,000 trademark applications or registrations and 3,800 patent applications have been cancelled (about 400 in April 2026 alone). For those who use reputable consultants, no problem; for DoUs, it is recommended to use real photos and not stock or retouched ones, as they could be detected.
