If I were a detective, I would be just like James Bond, Though he has a Cool Car – Aston Martin DB5 , But importantly he always upgrade his suspects methodology in order to catch them . Such kind of Meticulous detective work required to solve the challenges in the Electronics world also, The world more and more moving towards electronics, so do the instances of counterfeit electronics components winding us into legitimate products.
Counterfeiting is a Huge Challenge into today’s Semiconductor industry, it could lead into a huge lost in revenue for businesses which directly influence job loss and unemployment .
Although Counterfeiting may occasionally involve someone actually purchasing illegal components based on their lower price or easier availability , The sophistication in the methods of some counterfeiters far exceeds basic larceny, their crime move into a new advance world and to detect the same Electronics world need advance technologies , Let’s take a closer look at counterfeit electronics components , their impact into Product in different stages from Design to after sales services and how we can take more prudent approach to avoid becoming a victims of those who go to great lengths to perpetuate Fraud. What is Counterfeit Electronics Components? A Counterfeit semiconductor chip may encompass an entire product or one or more elements that comprise a larger system. Electronics Manufactures are invest a huge resources to distinguishing their brand from competitor , For electronics components manufactures this may include years of research , Design & Development to ensure their products will deliver healthy result in the most advanced product families for end users, unfortunately several electronics manufactures are come into the trap of clone chip suppliers which largely force OEMs to bleed a lot of revenue to this counterfeit challenges.
Additionally inferior products may cause injury or loss of life in critical industries such as medical, Automotive , Railway & the Military . In fact the extent of seriousness of counterfeit electronic components have motivated governmental agencies , regulatory organizations and electronics manufacturers to join forces to mitigate the problem. Counterfeit ain’t cool If your goal is just to make counterfeit clone semiconductors and not add code or hardware improvements, please go do something else instead.
I see a few peoples just make or Supply straight-up clones, make confusing names, selling those parts in much cheap prices with easy available option and think it’s socially acceptable. It’s not. The beginners get confused as to what’s a real product with the quality, service, and support, and most of the time the clones are crappy. I have a box of “Microprocessor” from all over the world. They’re not adding value in any way — it’s just someone being selfish. I get a dozen emails a week from parents or kids who bought a fake Arduino, and they’re upset it doesn’t work and that the eBay seller or fly-by-night store won’t help them. Most of all, get cloned enough and any reasonable person might just stop doing open software and hardware due to the support burden. What is being Done to avoid the Counterfeiting of electronics components? Several Organizations Bring rules on Fraudulent/Counterfeit Electronic Parts: Avoidance, Detection, Mitigation and Disposition—Distributors counterfeit electronics parts; Avoidance protocol , Distributors Standard to provides a set of standard practices that purchasers and distributors of electronic components should implement to protect their customers from ending up with fraudulent/counterfeit Electronics components.
Even with a Number of Standards and regulations in place, the problem of counterfeit electronic components has continued to proliferate. In 2017, the US Military estimated that 15% of the replacement parts making their way into their systems were counterfeit.
Addressing this problem and preventing escalation of counterfeit electronic components into other critical usage such as Railways, Automotive , Educational Research Lab, Product Design , Prototype , Manufacturing , Maintenance become one of the Major priority for Industry today . How Can I Avoid Counterfeit electronic Components on My PCB ? Obviously, It is a Huge challenge for Entire Electronics Industry that virtually effects everyone , You’re probably asking yourself if there is any processes with which you can Protect your PCB from ending up with counterfeit components . Just as James Bond always manage to Detect his suspects, You can take certain measures to reduce the possibility of being arrested by counterfeiters , whether you personally source components or rely on contract manufacturer (CM) or EMS Houses.
Know Your Supplier Components procurement is a time consuming process that involves dedication and due diligence to perform correctly . If you prefer to travel this path alone, one thing you can do is to make sure you guard yourself against counterfeit electronics components by understanding their procurement processes including , Transparency – Does your supplier willing to give any post sales support . Risk Mitigation—Does your supplier practice certified best processes and procedures, such as source assessment and fraudulent/counterfeit distribution avoidance .
Credentials: Does your suppliers dealing with reputed other organizations including Government. Instituting these basic guidelines will give you some protection against the acquisition of counterfeit electronic components, however the best way to be fully protected by communicating with well placed market leaders who are having proven credentials in various sector of industry. Seutes Technologies As a leading global independent distributor, we serve electronics Industry including semiconductors, passive, electrical, electro-mechanical, embedded components with No Minimum Order Quantity and Earliest Delivery. Seutes build a broad collaborative partner for electronics industry as a whole, with our large purchasing power and direct account with many well-known manufacturer and authorized supplier we provide complete world class supply chain services to some of the world renewed organizations and institutions for their design , prototype , maintenance and productions with our Quality demanding services .
