International financial heavyweights attending an economic conference in Switzerland were treated in their swag bags to a bright shiny iPod shuffle. One problem: It was a Chinese counterfeit.

And not even a fake talking third-generation shuffle, but instead a second-generation clip-on knock-off. And the impostor doesn't even have Apple's signature shuffle feature.

That's the logo-ed fraud on the left and the real Apple McCoy on the right

Perhaps if those 1,200 financial titans dig deeper into their goodie bags, they might also find a fake Swiss Rolex.

We learned of this embarrassing boo-boo at the swanky Swiss Economic Forum thanks to the Cult of Mac, which also noted that the wonderfully named head of Apple's Swiss operations, Adrian Schmucki, is none too happy about the provision of the sham shuffles by the equally wonderfully named Swiss insurance company, Schweizerische Mobiliar Versicherungsgesellschaft AG.

Schmucki wants to sue the schmucks at Mobilar.

However, according to what we can glean from the humorously convoluted Google translation of the original article from the Swiss news outlet, Berner Zeitung, Schmucki's threatened lawsuit doesn't stand much of a chance.

The same BZ, by the way, today coincidentally features photos and a video of an odd Swiss ritual performed at the opening of the new Zurich Apple Store.

And we thought the buttoned-up Swiss were both punctilious and proper. Here at The Reg we learn something new every day. ®

Related stories

• Apple, Microsoft sued over iPod, Zune controls (17 July 2009)
• Obama gives Queen iPod (3 April 2009)
• Mystery chip found inside talking iPod Shuffle's earphones (16 March 2009)
• 'Talking' iPod Shuffle spills guts (13 March 2009)
• Non-Apple talking Shuffle earphones emerge (13 March 2009)
• 'Bland' iPod Shuffle gets third-party arty visual update (12 March 2009)
• Apple restyles iPod Shuffle (11 March 2009)