Integrated circuits most counterfeited component, says IHS

The five most counterfeited electronic components are semiconductors with widespread commercial and military use, according to information and analytics provider IHS.

Taken together, the components account for $169bn in potential annual risk for the global electronics supply chain, said IHS in a new report. The worldwide electronic components sector is estimated to be worth around $300bn.

The five most commonly counterfeited semiconductor types are analog integrated circuits (ICs), accounting for 25.2 per cent of all reports, followed by microprocessors (13.4 per cent), memory ICs (13.1 per cent), programmable logic devices (8.3 per cent) and transistors (7.6 per cent), according to the IHS data. 

All told, these five component commodity groups accounted for slightly more than two-thirds of all counterfeit incidents reported in 2011.

2011 was a record year for counterfeit reporting, and incidents of counterfeit parts have tripled during the past two years. Counterfeit parts often are cheap substitutes or salvaged waste components that fail to meet quality requirements, leading to potential failures.

"A faulty counterfeit analog IC can cause problems ranging from a mundane dropped phone call to a serious tragedy in the aviation, medical, military, nuclear or automotive areas," said IHS' director of supply chain product marketing Rory King.

"Furthermore, the excessive cost of rework, repair, and customer returns for component failures is significant," he added.

"For the global electronics supply chain, tackling the problem of counterfeit and fraudulent components has become an issue of paramount importance."