HP and South African authorities have dismantled a criminal operation involved in wholesaling of counterfeit cartridges for HP.
In August 2019, South African officials, supported by HP, carried out a significant raid in the Pretoria region, targeting a large storage facility used for the counterfeiter’s illicit business.
As a result of the enforcement action, the officials confiscated 800 ready-for-sale counterfeit ink and toner cartridges.
“At HP, we are committed to safeguarding our valued clients against becoming unwitting victims of illegal, counterfeit goods, and we’re proud of our continued partnership with South African authorities,” says Tony Bssat, print lead for Africa at HP.
“Working with local authorities has disrupted the trade of counterfeit HP branded cartridges across the country and is a reflection of the success of our Anti-Counterfeiting and Fraud Programme.”
Across EMEA over the last five years, approximately 12-million counterfeits and components have been seized by local authorities, supported by HP. HP has conducted over 4 500 audits and inspections (CPPAs and CDIs) of partners’ stocks or suspicious deliveries for customers.
The company points out that counterfeiting is a crime and illegal imitations can cause performance and reliability issues.
In addition, should a printer break because of using counterfeit printer ink or toner, the manufacturer’s warranty may be void.