The current scourge of humanity, if the RIAA, MPAA, MicroSoft and others are to be believed is counterfeiting and piracy.  Every copied movie or Windows disk is a threat to the very existence of the free world and it’s economy.  That may well be true on some level, but there are far worse examples to prosecute, like the fake mil-spec chips that are becoming very common purchases for a cash strapped US Armed Forces.  Imaging how upset you would be if a CPU you purcahsed for your home PC turned out not to be what it claimed to be.  Now imagine that the fake chip is powering an air craft you are flying in or in the fire control of a Navy vessel.

The military is not buying these fake chips intentionally, but because of budget constraints they are forced to buy from the cheapest source.  That opens them up to the possibility of fake or damaged goods being supplied, which turns out to be exactly what is happening.  Read more on this incredibly infuriating story at The Inquirer.

“US WARPLANES, ships and communications networks have become vulnerable thanks to fake microchips flooding into the western world from China.

Use of these fraudulent chips could be the cause of equipment failure which, depending on the equipment, could be fatal.

The worst affected companies include Boeing Satallite Systems, Raytheon Missile Systems, Northrop Grumman Navigation Systems, BAE, and Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control.”

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