Does this qualify as a CFAA violation? I think so and for monetary gain, no less...

jrockway · on Oct 23, 2014

Technically the counterfeit devices should have never been allowed into the country. So it should be interesting how this plays out.

beagle3 · on Oct 23, 2014

Are they actually counterfeit?

Legally, I'd be surprised. They are re-implementing the FTDI protocol, which is completely legal. They are reusing FTDI's PID/VID, which might or might not be a violation of the USB specs or USB recommendations -- I'm not sure about that -- but I'd be really surprised if that matches the legal definition of "counterfeit" for which customs has the right (and duty) to stop imports.

jrockway · on Oct 23, 2014

I'm guessing they intended to go after devices sold as FT232s with the FTDI logo on them. If there's collateral damage, that could be a problem.

Then again, the users _did_ agree to let that happen in the clickwrap agreement, so it's still uncertain.

Either way, I'm readying the popcorn. This should be interesting.