I am a bit confused, When you buy from Amazon, isn’t there an explicit indication whether you are buying from Amazon itself vs “marketplace” seller? Shouldn’t stuff direct from Amazon be legit?
No, Amazon mixes inventory. You should not trust Amazon with anything that is expensive or you put into your body. A product gets high ratings and is successful, then counterfeiters flood the market with a fake product that you end up inadvertently buying.
A recent example is Eclipse glasses that were purchased on Amazon. Since the inventory was co-mingled and Amazon doesn't have the time or expertise they refunded most purchases of the glasses both from legitimate and illegitimate sellers.
I could be mistaken, but my understanding is that there is no indicator if comingled inventory is enabled or disabled for a SKU, and that even product sold “by Amazon” could be comingled.
That is no guarantee it seems, even for really expensive items.
Go to Youtube and search for "chaseontwowheels" and "rocks", you'll see an interesting story in three parts about a guy trying to order a high end camera from Amazon.
A recent example is Eclipse glasses that were purchased on Amazon. Since the inventory was co-mingled and Amazon doesn't have the time or expertise they refunded most purchases of the glasses both from legitimate and illegitimate sellers.