Counterfeit Cisco Network Gear Traced to China, Not Surprisingly

Departments of Justice and Homeland Security just announced 30 convictions, more than $143 million in seizures from initiative targeting traffickers in counterfeit network hardware. Operation Network Raider, a domestic and international enforcement initiative targeting the illegal distribution of counterfeit network hardware manufactured in China, has resulted in 30 felony convictions and more than 700 seizures of counterfeit Cisco network hardware and labels with an estimated retail value of more than $143 million. In addition, nine individuals are facing trial and another eight defendants are awaiting sentencing. This operation is a joint initiative by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection working with the U.S. Department of Justice. On May 6, as a part of this joint initiative, a Saudi citizen who resides in Sugarland, Texas, was sentenced in the Southern District of Texas to 51 months in prison and ordered to pay $119,400 in restitution to Cisco Systems. A federal jury found him guilty on January 22 of charges related to his trafficking in counterfeit Cisco products. He purchased counterfeit Cisco Gigabit Interface Converters (GBICs) from an online vendor in China with the intention of selling them to the U.S. Department of Defense for use by U.S. Marine Corps personnel operating in Iraq. The computer network for which the GBICs were intended is used by the U.S. Marine Corps to transmit troop movements, relay intelligence and maintain security for a military base west of Fallujah, Iraq. ICE and CBP seized more than 94,000 counterfeit Cisco network components and labels during the course of the operation. There has been a 75 percent decrease in seizures of counterfeit network hardware at U.S. borders from 2008 to 2009.