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A Scottish company that previously used Windows Update to deactivate counterfeit versions of one of its chips is trying a new approach. Back in 2014, FTDI caused considerable upset among electronics enthusiasts after releasing a driver via Windows Update that ‘bricked’ unauthorised copies of their USB to UART chip, rendering it unusable by setting its… Continue reading Chipmaker FTDI takes another tack in counterfeit battle

The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), representing U.S. leadership in semiconductor manufacturing, design, and research, today applauded congressional approval of the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 (H.R. 644/S.1269), bipartisan Customs legislation that includes a key provision to combat counterfeit semiconductors. The bill requires U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to expeditiously share information… Continue reading Bipartisan Customs Bill Combats Counterfeit Semiconductors

Just before the holidays in December 2015 the U.S. Attorney’s office in Connecticut was quite busy: three Chinese nationals were arrested and held on federal criminal complaints pertaining to counterfeit Xilinx components and stolen, military-grade semiconductors from the U.S. Navy that were set to be exported from the United States. On the same day, Jeffrey… Continue reading Electronics Counterfeiters Get Their Day in Court

http://mil-embedded.com/4643-counterfeit-electronics-persistent-and-still-present/ Counterfeit electronics is a persistent matter that will be not easily go away, says Michael Cacheiro, vice president, supply chain management at Lockheed Martin. Incidents will continue to increase, as “counterfeit electronics used by the military increased by 250 percent between 2005-2008 and quadrupled from 2009-2012,” and 21 percent comes from authorized distributers. He… Continue reading Counterfeit electronics persistent threat to business and lives

http://www.electronicsweekly.com/news/business/fbi-arrests-counterfeit-chip-traffickers-2015-12/ The U.S. Department of Justice is bringing criminal charges against three Chinese nationals for trafficking in stolen Intel and Xilinx chips. The three defendants are charged with illegally redistributing military semiconductors and selling counterfeit hardware to US military contractors. “In October 2014 and in March 2015, Yan (Ben Yan, one of the three men… Continue reading FBI arrests counterfeit chip traffickers

http://globalpurchasing.com/purchasing-confidence-surges-september?NL=ESB-01&Issue=ESB-01_20151008_ESB-01_385&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_1&utm_rid=CPG05000002126099&utm_campaign=3719&utm_medium=email&elq2=b60403f74cb9471b94154f179e46abdc More buyers of electronic components expressed a positive outlook on the economy in September, as the Global Purchasing Index surged more than 8% to a reading of 124. The GPI has remained above the 100-point mark indicating economic optimism all year, but the September reading sets an all-time record for the index, which launched… Continue reading Purchasing Confidence Surges in September

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-09-25/texas-instruments-xilinx-duped-by-russia-export-ring-u-s-says Chip makers may testify in trial of accused conspirators U.S. alleges computer chips were provided to Russian military The unmarked business in an office park on the outskirts of Houston claimed to make traffic lights. In reality, it was a spy-run outfit that shipped sensitive technology to the Russian military, according to the U.S.… Continue reading Texas Instruments, Xilinx Duped by Russia Export Ring, U.S. Says

http://smt.iconnect007.com/index.php/article/92866/dods-first-pass-at-grey-market-regulation/92869/?skin=smt More Vendors, More Problems The government acquisition process is a complex one. It is not set up to be nimble, nor is it structured to keep pace with the commercial sector, of which the majority of grey market material is supplied by. The U.S. government gets a great deal of heat for many things,… Continue reading DoD’s First Pass at Grey Market Regulation

https://www.dorsey.com/newsresources/publications/client-alerts/2015/09/electronic-counterfeit-parts-regulations itemImage.AlternateText Defense Department Proposes to Expand Applicability of Electronic-Counterfeit-Parts Regulations; Tens of Thousands of Contractors and Subcontractors—Including Small Businesses—Affected September 22, 2015 It has long been a goal of the Federal government to eliminate counterfeit parts—parts of unknown (and likely false) origin and uncertain reliability—from the procurement supply chain. But these efforts have picked… Continue reading Defense Department Proposes to Expand Applicability of Electronic-Counterfeit-Parts Regulations; Tens of Thousands of Contractors and Subcontractors—Including Small Businesses—Affected

http://www.ebnonline.com/author.asp?section_id=1061&doc_id=278760& Ask engineers to solve a problem, and they’re bound to come with something. The Pentagon’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) can attest to that. Last year, the agency published a call for proposals turning to engineers to develop a nearly microscopic component that could be attached to system components. The idea behind the… Continue reading DARPA’s Proposed Dielets to Guard Against Counterfeiting