Adding the clinical framing, because it changes how the question reads.

COA red flags for certificates of analysis — here's what to look for when reviewing a Certificate of Analysis:

• No HPLC data: If there's no chromatography graph, it's not a real COA
• Exact 100% purity: Suspicious — real testing always shows slight variation
• No batch number: Can't trace back to specific production
• No endotoxin testing: For injectables, this is essential
• Template looks like it was made in Word: Professional labs have standardized formats

I have seen fake COAs that are literally photoshopped. Always verify independently if possible.

newstart_MO said:

COA red flags for certificates of analysis — here's what to look for when reviewing a Certificate of Analysis: No HPLC data: If there's no…

This matches mine closely enough to be worth saying so out loud.

newstart_MO said:

COA red flags for certificates of analysis — here's what to look for when reviewing a Certificate of Analysis: No HPLC data: If there's no…

Coming at newstart_MO’s question from a different direction. The useful move here is to separate what is established from what is widely repeated. Those two sets overlap less than the confident tone of most write-ups suggests, and the second set is where nearly all the disagreement on this board comes from.

The figures, for anyone assembling their own picture. For anyone reading later: the numbers in this thread are worth checking against a primary source before you act on them, including mine. Half the figures circulating in this community trace back to a secondary summary that dropped a qualifier.

A narrower follow-up, since the general answer is now clear:

How would you tell the difference between that and the alternative explanation?