Chinese Counterfeit Lightning Cables Confiscated in Alaska

MacRumors · Jan 4, 2013, 01:01 PM

More than $600,000 worth of counterfeit Lighting cables were seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection at a routine customs search in Anchorage, Alaska (via 9to5Mac). The cables had arrived from China via plane and were designed to look like Apple's $19 Lightning to USB cables, complete with fake Apple logos and UL icons.

Quote:

But the knock-off logos weren't enough of a disguise. The items stood out as counterfeits, Frank Falcon, CBP spokesman said. They were packaged for retail sale in cardboard blister packs that were sub-standard compared to Apple's trademark white packaging.

Falcon said a manufacturer in China is responsible for the shipment. He noted that while it is "difficult to deal with a manufacturer in another country," the bust will "bring more scrutiny" to future shipments from the company.

This is a large bust for such products. As one can imagine, over $600,000 in cables and adaptors means there was "quite a bit of stuff" seized, Falcon said.

Apple products are frequently counterfeited, and even Apple's retail stores are sometimes knocked off.

Article Link: Chinese Counterfeit Lightning Cables Confiscated in Alaska

iphone495 · Jan 4, 2013, 01:05 PM

Wow, THIS IS huge! Big win for the CBP

CocoaPuffs · Jan 4, 2013, 01:08 PM

Does this mean my $5 OEM cable from eBay ain't coming anymore?

rnizlek · Jan 4, 2013, 01:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CocoaPuffs

Does this mean my $5 OEM cable from eBay ain't coming anymore?

As long as it wasn't falsely labeled as an OEM cable you should be fine!

deannnnn · Jan 4, 2013, 01:17 PM

Good.

It amazes me that there are companies in China that have factories dedicated to counterfeiting. Use those resources to make some legit products!

Yvan256 · 10:05 AM

600 000$ / 19$ = 31 578 cables.

rshanahan · Jan 4, 2013, 01:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by deannnnn

Good.

It amazes me that there are companies in China that have factories dedicated to counterfeiting. Use those resources to make some legit products!

Agree, just make a good $5 cable and leave the apple logo off!

String · Jan 4, 2013, 01:35 PM

The worse thing is they probably don't work right. There are £4 iPhone adaptors but all they do is charge the phone, nothing else works.

superman23 · Jan 4, 2013, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by String

The worse thing is they probably don't work right. There are £4 iPhone adaptors but all they do is charge the phone, nothing else works.

well thats because the parts inside the real cables cost way more than £4

...half of them existing just so the cable has to be expensive!

SockRolid · Jan 4, 2013, 02:35 PM

China is the counterfeit capital of the world. The counterfeiting industry accounts for 8% of their GDP (as of 2010.)

CyrusKafaiWu · Jan 4, 2013, 02:40 PM

It's just a cable. They didn't even need to counterfeit it.

mrsir2009 · Jan 4, 2013, 02:41 PM

I wonder what customs is going to do with 30 000 cables

Ironduke · Jan 4, 2013, 02:56 PM

The fact these guys can beat apple for price by so much proves apple deserve to be counterfeited

GITSUM!

dude-x · Jan 4, 2013, 03:15 PM

I bought a counterfeit cable in the Dominican Republic for about $US25 dollars. The first sign I had something was wrong was when I plugged it in, there was a bit of resistance. Then when i pulled it out, the sheath over the connector came out. Nevertheless I was able to charge my phone and when I got back to the US, the original cable worked fine.

rdlink · Jan 4, 2013, 03:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ironduke

The fact these guys can beat apple for price by so much proves apple deserve to be counterfeited

GITSUM!

Another genius who doesn't understand the costs associated with R&D and developing IP.

I'd bet you think you're underpaid, also...

Gemütlichkeit · Jan 4, 2013, 03:35 PM

Apple, I'm fine paying $20 for a cable but could you please offer them in a longer size?

bstpierre · Jan 4, 2013, 03:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by deannnnn

Good.

It amazes me that there are companies in China that have factories dedicated to counterfeiting. Use those resources to make some legit products!

1st shift makes legitimate products. 2nd shift makes the counterfeit products.

OldSchoolMacGuy · Jan 4, 2013, 04:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ironduke

The fact these guys can beat apple for price by so much proves apple deserve to be counterfeited

GITSUM!

These counterfeits aren't exact copies. They generally are much cheaper quality and fall apart quickly. Many of them will fit in either way but only charge with the adaptor pointed in 1 way unlike the real Apple cables.

Also, I have yet to see a single 3rd party cable (other than Apple authorized ones) that will do video. All of them so far will only charge and do sync (many only charge and don't even sync).

On top of that it's obvious that you don't understand the costs of development and other things that go into creating a product.

OldSchoolMacGuy · Jan 4, 2013, 04:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CocoaPuffs

Does this mean my $5 OEM cable from eBay ain't coming anymore?

It wasn't OEM if it was only $5. The auction likely claimed OEM-like. If it was true OEM, it'd be coming from Apple and these counterfeits wouldn't worry you (and you wouldn't get them for $5 unless the seller was an idiot).

mw360 · Jan 4, 2013, 04:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OldSchoolMacGuy

It wasn't OEM if it was only $5. The auction likely claimed OEM-like. If it was true OEM, it'd be coming from Apple and these counterfeits wouldn't worry you (and you wouldn't get them for $5 unless the seller was an idiot).

In common parlance I think OEM means fake

blueroom · Jan 4, 2013, 04:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrsir2009

I wonder what customs is going to do with 30 000 cables

Destroy them. Simple as that.

rmwebs · Jan 4, 2013, 05:43 PM

I bought one from Play.com - £2.99. Looks identical to the official one, even the build quality was the same. Works fine for both syncing and charging. Doesnt have any noticable slowdowns, etc. It did state that it cant do audio but thats not something I'd ever use it for anyway.

I refuse to pay £15 for a cable that could have just as easily been a microusb cable.

timhuerta · Jan 4, 2013, 07:40 PM

More than $600,000 worth of counterfeit Lighting cables were seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection at a routine customs search in Anchorage, Alaska (via 9to5Mac).

Am I the only one that noticed that the story said Lighting not Lightning. So, is this story really about cheap Ikea furniture?

macs4nw · Jan 4, 2013, 08:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by timhuerta

.....So, is this story really about cheap Ikea furniture?

Is even that made in China nowadays? LOL

Quote:

Originally Posted by jessica.

.....By putting the Apple logo on it I think these cables were coined to essentially fool consumers. I don't mind no-name cables (monoprice) at all but deliberately trying to fool consumers with cables sporting the Apple logo is wrong.

Yes, and sadly the confiscation of one shipment won't stop or discourage these factories in any way, shape or form. If anything , they'll learn from this, and get better at counterfeiting for the inevitable 'next' shipment.

macduke · 10:03 AM

I once made the mistake of buying cheap 3” 30-pin cables. They quickly fell apart. I'm actually surprised they didn't first catch fire. I wish I could get a good 3” Lightning cable to keep in my MacBook bag. Anyone know of some?

Jan 4, 2013, 01:17 PM	#5
deannnnn macrumors 68000 Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: New York City & South Florida	Good. It amazes me that there are companies in China that have factories dedicated to counterfeiting. Use those resources to make some legit products! __________________ MacBook Pro (Retina) / iPhone 5 / iPad 1
	2

Jan 4, 2013, 01:27 PM	#6
Yvan256 macrumors 601 Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Canada	600 000$ / 19$ = 31 578 cables. __________________ The first 90% of the code accounts for the first 90% of the development time. The remaining 10% of the code accounts for the other 90% of the development time. -Tom Cargill, Bell Labs. Last edited by balamw; Jan 5, 2013 at 10:05 AM. Reason: Thread derailing joke reference removed
	11

Jan 4, 2013, 02:35 PM	#10
SockRolid macrumors 65816 Join Date: Jan 2010	China is the counterfeit capital of the world. The counterfeiting industry accounts for 8% of their GDP (as of 2010.) __________________ Sent from my iPad Simulator
	2

Jan 4, 2013, 02:40 PM	#11
CyrusKafaiWu macrumors member Join Date: Jun 2011	It's just a cable. They didn't even need to counterfeit it. __________________ 11" 2011 1.6ghz i5 Macbook Air 4GB, 128GB SSD iPhone 3G 8GB (feels like the stone age) 2nd Génération Apple TV Games?
	1

Jan 4, 2013, 02:41 PM	#12
mrsir2009 macrumors 604 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Wellington, New Zealand	I wonder what customs is going to do with 30 000 cables __________________ How to Prevent your Mac from Overheating
	1

Jan 4, 2013, 01:05 PM	#2
iphone495 macrumors member Join Date: Sep 2012	Wow, THIS IS huge! Big win for the CBP
	0

Jan 4, 2013, 01:08 PM	#3
CocoaPuffs macrumors 68000 Join Date: Aug 2008	Does this mean my $5 OEM cable from eBay ain't coming anymore?
	7

Jan 4, 2013, 01:35 PM	#8
String macrumors member Join Date: Jun 2010	The worse thing is they probably don't work right. There are £4 iPhone adaptors but all they do is charge the phone, nothing else works.
	1

Jan 4, 2013, 02:56 PM	#13
Ironduke macrumors 65816 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: England	The fact these guys can beat apple for price by so much proves apple deserve to be counterfeited GITSUM! __________________ iMac 21.5" 4GB Ram, ATI 4670, 500GB HD - 13" Unibody Macbook Collectors Edition 2.4GHz, 4GB Ram, 320GB HD - iPhone 3G
	4

Jan 4, 2013, 03:15 PM	#14
dude-x macrumors member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: New York City	I bought a counterfeit cable in the Dominican Republic for about $US25 dollars. The first sign I had something was wrong was when I plugged it in, there was a bit of resistance. Then when i pulled it out, the sheath over the connector came out. Nevertheless I was able to charge my phone and when I got back to the US, the original cable worked fine.
	0

Jan 4, 2013, 03:35 PM	#16
Gemütlichkeit macrumors 65816 Join Date: Nov 2010	Apple, I'm fine paying $20 for a cable but could you please offer them in a longer size? __________________ "It does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods, or no God." -Thomas Jefferson
	1

Jan 4, 2013, 05:43 PM	#22
rmwebs macrumors 68030 Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: North London, England	I bought one from Play.com - £2.99. Looks identical to the official one, even the build quality was the same. Works fine for both syncing and charging. Doesnt have any noticable slowdowns, etc. It did state that it cant do audio but thats not something I'd ever use it for anyway. I refuse to pay £15 for a cable that could have just as easily been a microusb cable. __________________ Walt Disney World Guide
	2

Jan 4, 2013, 07:40 PM	#23
timhuerta macrumors newbie Join Date: Nov 2012	China makes a power play on Lamps Plus? More than $600,000 worth of counterfeit Lighting cables were seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection at a routine customs search in Anchorage, Alaska (via 9to5Mac). Am I the only one that noticed that the story said Lighting not Lightning. So, is this story really about cheap Ikea furniture?
	4

Jan 4, 2013, 09:54 PM	#25
macduke macrumors 68020 Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Columbia, MO	I once made the mistake of buying cheap 3” 30-pin cables. They quickly fell apart. I'm actually surprised they didn't first catch fire. I wish I could get a good 3” Lightning cable to keep in my MacBook bag. Anyone know of some? __________________ MacBook Pro R-Type / Quad 2.6GHz Core i7 / 2880×1800 / 16GB / 512GB SSD Canon 7D w/grip / 24-105L / 100-400L / Pro9000 MkII Printer 64GB iPhone 5 / 32GB iPad 2 / 8GB iPhone Last edited by balamw; Jan 5, 2013 at 10:03 AM. Reason: Thread derailing joke reference removed
	1

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