Cheap knock-offs don't provide anywhere near the protection or durability of the products they replace. And most riders won't be able to tell the difference between real and counterfeit helmets.
The storm is quickly approaching Hong Kong, where officials have warned residents to take shelter. Forecasts predict that the storm will weaken over land.
Officials and residents raced to prepare as the storm approached the northern part of the country. In 2013 typhoon Haiyan killed more than 6,000 people in the Philippines.
Pyotr Verzilov, a member of the activist group Pussy Riot and the publisher of an independent media outlet, was reportedly rushed to the hospital on Tuesday, where he remains in critical condition.