Winning the Battle Against Counterfeit Semiconductor Products

As with every type of product, ranging from jewelry to wine to currency, semiconductor products can be

counterfeited. Semiconductors are the “brains” inside critically-important electronic systems, including

healthcare and medical equipment, electric power grids, communications systems, automotive braking

and airbag systems, and military and aerospace systems. Because they control the operation of these

and other vital electronics, counterfeit semiconductor components pose major risks to the health,

safety, and security of people worldwide. Often harvested from electronic waste (e-waste), most

counterfeit semiconductors are components re-marked to indicate they are newer than the original

units or they perform to a higher standard. Semiconductor companies and their Authorized

Distributors, Authorized Resellers, and Authorized Aftermarket Distributors/Manufacturers have

extensive, proven controls to ensure products are properly manufactured, tested, handled, and stored

to prevent failures. Counterfeiters have few if any such controls. The result is that, unlike legitimate

semiconductors from authorized sources, counterfeits and other semiconductors available from nonauthorized

sources often have low quality and poor reliability.

http://www.semiconductors.org/clientuploads/Product%20Security/SIA%20Anti-Counterfeiting%20Whitepaper.pdf

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