Glossary

A virtual replica of a physical object, person, or process that can be used to simulate the object’s behaviour and optimise its performance.

A method of applying codes or information directly onto a product, without the use of a tax stamp or other label.

Technological infrastructure and protocols that allow simultaneous access, validation, and record updating in an immutable manner across a network spread over multiple entities or locations, with no central hub. Generally associated with blockchain systems.

The unauthorised transfer of goods from one jurisdiction to another in order to bypass taxation or regulatory requirements.

The newest version of the datamatrix code, the most commonly used GS1-compliant 2D matrix code in pharmaceuticals.

Under the EU Tobacco Products Directive this refers to any natural or legal person involved in the trade of tobacco products, including for export, from the manufacturer to the last economic operator before the first retail outlet.

An EU regulation on electronic identification and trust services for electronic transactions in the European Single Market, established under EU Regulation 910/2014 of 23 July 2014.

A data standard for the unique identification of any individual item around the world. Whereas a Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) identifies a class of trade item, such as ‘two-litre Acme bottled water’, an EPC can only identify one particular two-litre bottle of Acme water. Only the combination of a GTIN plus a serial number corresponds to an EPC.

A global GS1 product code standard for creating and sharing visibility event data, both within and across enterprises, to give users a shared view of physical or digital objects within a relevant business context.

An electronic authentication technique that is a legal substitute for a handwritten signature.

The conversion of information or data into a code.

The conversion of data or information into a format that requires a key or password to access the data.

A GS1 subsidiary organisation administering Electronic Product Code systems and coordinating the development of associated data standards.

An electronic statement of a product’s history and passage through the supply chain, with each movement and transaction recorded so that, at any point in the chain and at its end, the lineage of the product can be obtained. Especially used to record batches of pharmaceutical products.

A 1D (linear) barcode developed as a superset of the UPC code, with an additional digit allowing a tenfold increase in the number of possible unique values. Like UPC codes, EANs encode global trade item numbers (GTINs) in line with GS1 international standards.

A 1D (linear) barcode of the EAN/UPC symbology, used to label small consumer products with limited space for a barcode.

A body created within the European Union to support EU member states in the fight against terrorism, cybercrime and other serious and organised forms of crime, like currency counterfeiting.

The Tobacco Products Directive (2014/40/EU) is a directive of the European Union which places limits on the sale and merchandising of tobacco and related products in the EU. The TPD aims to improve the functioning of the internal market for tobacco and related products, while ensuring a high level of health protection for European citizens. Under the TPD, all member states were required to implement unit-level track and trace and security features by May 2019.

Taxation imposed by countries as a levy for specific items such as tobacco or alcohol. Also called sin tax due to its association with so-called ‘sinful’ products.

Part of the qualification process to receive a tender document. The buyer (eg. a government organisation) is requesting a provider to express an interest in providing goods and services for a project.

A term used in food traceability for describing end-to-end track and trace of food products, from the field where they were grown to the consumers who purchased them.

A new global wireless standard after 1G, 2G, 3G, and 4G networks. 5G works at higher frequencies than its predecessors, resulting in greater bandwidth and faster data transfer. 5G therefore enables a new kind of network designed to connect virtually everyone and everything together, including machines, objects, and devices.

Refers to the combination of scanning and software programmes with unique physical characteristics intrinsic to a product or secure document. Fingerprinting is based on the fundamental premise that at the microscopic or molecular level the characteristics of every printed document or package are unique to that item.

A hardware design aspect that defines and prescribes the size, shape, and other physical specifications of components. A form factor may represent a broad class of similarly sized components, or it may prescribe a specific standard.

An item is fungible if one unit of the item is equivalent to another unit of the same item of the same quality at the same time, place, etc. Fungibility allows an item or asset to be interchanged with other individual goods or assets of the same type. Fungible assets simplify exchange and trade processes, as fungibility implies equal value between assets.

An analytical method combining gas chromatography and mass spectrometry to identify different substances within a test sample. Used in fuel integrity programmes.

A subset of artificial intelligence that focuses on creating new content, such as text, images, audio, or video, by learning patterns from existing data. Common examples include language models like GPT (which powers ChatGPT) or image generation models like DALL-E. Unlike agentic AI, generative AI operates under user prompts and can’t perform tasks on its own initiative.

The identification of the geographic location of an object.

A GS1 standard number unique to each stock-keeping unit (SKU) or specific product type, but not unique to a product at unit level.

A not-for-profit organisation that develops and maintains global standards for identifying products, associations, services and localisations and for exchanging data. The best known of these standards is the barcode, a symbol printed on products that can be scanned electronically and that is widely used in supply chains around the world.

A 1D (linear) alphanumeric barcode for labelling outer packaging and logistics units, such as pallets. Can hold more information than EAN-13 codes.

The production, distribution or sale of counterfeit, adulterated or diverted goods via illegal and unregulated channels. Also includes the evasion of taxes on legally produced goods.

Cigarettes which are legally produced under unique brand names – or no brand name at all – and destined primarily or exclusively for illicit distribution, outside the jurisdiction where they are produced.

A biochemical test measuring the presence or concentration of a molecule in an extracted substrate using an antibody or antigen.

Also called the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The next phase in the digitisation of the manufacturing sector, driven by the rise of data and connectivity, analytics, human-machine interaction, and improvements in robotics.

A technique that projects tiny droplets of ink directly onto a substrate, which then penetrates the surface. As there is no printing plate, the technique is favoured for printing variable and personalised data.

The fundamental building block of all modern electronic devices. An integrated system of multiple miniaturised and interconnected components embedded into a thin substrate of semiconductor material (usually silicon crystal). Also known as a chip or microchip.

An independent, non-governmental international organisation with a membership of 165 national standards bodies. Through its members, ISO brings together experts to share knowledge and develop voluntary, consensus-based, market-relevant international standards that support innovation and provide solutions to global challenges.

A network of physical objects that are embedded with sensors, software, and other technologies for the purpose of connecting and exchanging data with other devices and systems over the internet.

The ability of different information systems, devices and applications to access, exchange, integrate and cooperatively use data in a coordinated manner, within and across organisational, regional and national boundaries.

Name of the International Criminal Police Organisation, dating back to 1923. Its activity extends to all crimes of common law and especially those related to drug and gold trafficking, counterfeiting of money and capturing criminals harbouring in a foreign country. Police forces from most countries in the world take part in this organisation.

An ISO standard for the specification and usage of visible digital seal (VDS) data format for authentication, verification and acquisition of data carried by a document or object.

An ISO guidance standard for establishing interoperability among object identification systems to deter counterfeiting and illicit trade.

An ISO guidance standard for the content, security, issuance and examination of excise tax stamps.

An ISO guidance standard for establishing a framework for trust and interoperability.

An ISO guidance standard, under development, for establishing trustworthy supply chains for material goods.

An ISO/IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) standard specifying common rules for unique identification required to ensure full compatibility across different identities.

An ISO/IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) standard specifying a method whereby data stored within a barcode or RFID tag are structured, encoded and digitally signed.

A system of encryption whereby a ‘key’ is required to decode a message. The key is usually a handheld device which renders meaningful that which was previously unintelligible. Public keys may be disseminated widely, whereas private keys are restricted to certain individuals, thereby limiting access to the encrypted information. See also Public key infrastructure.

An acronym of ‘light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation’, a device that produces coherent light by stimulated emission of radiation.