A total of 818,000 counterfeit HP ink jet cartridges — that’s what local officials in Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) managed to seize during the first quarter of 2009.

The counterfeit cartridges are made primarily in China, but also in the Middle East. Ernest Azzam, an HP manager for the Middle East IPG, is quoted as saying:

“Counterfeit is happening not only at a cartridge level but also repacking of printer boxes. The reason it is so rampant in this region is the growth and sales have increased tremendously.”

This news comes as HP opens a renewed campaign against counterfeit consumables.

Those 818,000 cartridges are just the tip of the iceberg. The problem is worldwide and a lot of it does not get caught.

The company has reportedly run “4,620 investigations in 55 countries resulting in 3,528 enforcement actions globally seizing a total value of more than $795 million USD worth of counterfeit.”

As one company spokesperson said: “In some countries infringers often run legitimate businesses with original printing supplies but, in parallel, distribute and sell counterfeit products”

Customers are victims, too

Supplies counterfeiting is a highly lucrative and highly organized crime and involves massive duplication of packaging and wide distribution. Not only does it hurt HP’s bottom line (that’s their problem, after all), it also hurts consumers who pay full prices in the belief that they are buying the company-certified supplies and get third-rate ink and toner that yields fewer pages, has lower quality and fades quickly.

Approximately one out of every 20 cartridges sold in the U.S. and labeled as a brand-name product is a counterfeit, according to the Imaging Supplies Coalition (ISC). Counterfeit ink and toner is sold for an estimated $3 billion each year across the globe.

ISC offers these tips for avoiding counterfeit purchases:

• Buy only from the OEM or an authorized reseller. Check the manufacturer’s Web site for a list of merchants.
• Watch for prices that seem too low. That doesn’t automatically mean it’s a shady deal, but some investigation could be necessary.
• Pay attention to abnormally low performance after making a purchase — it could indicate the cartridge isn’t genuine.

ISC also encourages businesses and consumers to send in suspicious products to be authenticated. To learn more about what to do if you have any suspicious ink or toner cartridges, click here.

Tags: cartridge, counterfeit, Hewlett-Packard, HP, ink jet