Addressing Counterfeit Parts in the DoD Supply Chain

Abstract

In June 2007, the U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), asked the Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) Office of Technology Evaluation (OTE) to conduct a defense industrial base assessment of counterfeit electronics. NAVAIR suspected that an increasing number of counterfeit/defective electronics was infiltrating the DoD supply chain and affecting weapon system reliability. OTE data revealed that 39% of companies and organizations participating in the survey encountered counterfeit electronics during the four-year study period. Moreover, the frequency of detected counterfeit incidents was escalating rapidly, rising from 3,868 incidents in 2005 to 9,356 incidents in 2008. These counterfeit incidents included multiple versions of DoD qualified parts and components (U.S. Department of Commerce, 2010).