Apple warns customers to stay away from counterfeit chargers and batteries

Apple this morning updated its Support website with a notice cautioning customers to stay away from counterfeit and even some third-party chargers and batteries that it says could result in safety issues due to the fact that they may not be designed properly. “Beware of counterfeit parts,” says the notice. As for the batteries, the company is advising customers to visit an Apple Store or Apple Authorized Service Provider to ensure they receive a genuine Apple battery replacement.

Here’s Apple’s message in full:

Some counterfeit and third party power adapters and batteries may not be designed properly and could result in safety issues.

To ensure you receive a genuine Apple battery during a battery replacement, we recommend visiting an Apple Store or Apple Authorized Service Provider. If you need a replacement adapter to charge your Apple device, we recommend getting an Apple power adapter.

About two months ago, Apple filed a $2+ million lawsuit against Mobile Star LLC over infringing upon its registered trademarks and copyrights by selling counterfeit 5W USB Power Adapters and Lightning to USB cables on Amazon and Groupon.

Court documents have revealed that nearly 90 percent of supposedly genuine Apple power products, and Lightning cables sold over the past nine months as genuine by sellers on Amazon.com and delivered through Amazon’s “Fulfillment by Amazon” program were counterfeit.

“The safety of Apple’s customers is of paramount importance to Apple, and Apple devotes significant resources to ensuring its power products meet industry safety standards and are subjected to rigorous testing for safety and reliability,” the company wrote in court documents.

According to U.S. certification company UL, a whopping 99 percent of fake Apple chargers sold online fail basic safety tests.

Source: Apple Support