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Alleged HP forger arrested in China

The suspected leader of a counterfeiting group in China has been arrested for allegedly producing and selling fake Hewlett-Packard ink cartridges.
Written by Irene Tham, Contributor
Chinese authorities have arrested the suspected leader of a counterfeiting group for allegedly producing and selling fake Hewlett-Packard goods.

Although Chinese officials and HP have withheld the individual's identity, the arrest was a result of raids conducted in southern China.

On April 19, China's Public Security Bureau raided several factories in the area and confiscated more than 308,000 illegal printer cartridges and related items. Then in June, more than 107,000 bogus ink cartridges and related items, including four production lines, were seized, HP said in a statement.

"The raids were the result of several months of investigation and surveillance following tip-offs," an HP representative said. "Our co-operation with the Chinese law enforcement officials to stamp out the production and distribution of fake HP products is paying off."

Last year, similar raids in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen turned up more than 87,000 forged HP printer cartridges and related items.

Over the past two weeks, the company has also started cracking down on illegal activities in Indonesia.

More than 40 fake ink cartridges were found at three stores in Harco Glodok, a well-known shopping district for electronics products.

"Although small, the effort is a significant first step in our fight against counterfeit activities in Indonesia," the representative said.

Early this year, nine shops in Mumbai and Chennai, India, were found guilty of hawking false HP products.

To combat counterfeiting, HP introduced a new inkjet cartridge packaging that incorporates a "color shifting" security label, which toggles from color to black when viewed at different angles.

CNETAsia's Irene Tham reported from Singapore.
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