Apple the victim after Chinese scammers exploit returns policy
Fakers exchanged phony parts for real to build 'new' iPhones
The on-going saga over Apple’s “unfair” after-sales service in China has taken another twist after it was revealed that scammers exploited its returns policy to exchange fake parts for real ones, enabling them to build and sell new devices.
Five employees at an electronics store selling Apple goods were arrested in the Chinese city of Wenzhou after they submitted 121 fake iPhone 4S BAND parts to Apple, claiming they were damaged and needed replacing.
BAND is effectively the main part of an iPhone, with a value in China of around 3,000 yuan (£315), according to TechWeb (via TechInAsia).
The scammers would apparently exchange the fakes for real ones, buy a back cover, battery and other components and then build and sell as new iPhone 4S devices for a profit of 1,000 yuan (£105) a go.
It took Apple over a month to spot the scam, after which the owner of the store in question was informed and an investigation begun. On April 1 police finally cuffed a shop engineer and her boyfriend as the ringleaders.
Ironically, the investigation was being carried out at the same time as state-run media outlets in China, led by national broadcaster CCTV, were lambasting Apple over its “unfair” returns policy.
The main charge levelled was that, unlike in other countries, Apple would replace defective phones under warranty with new devices but use the back cover from the original phone so as to circumvent local laws requiring a reset on the warranty period.
CEO Tim Cook later offered “sincere apologies” in a grovelling open letter published on the Apple China web site and pledged to broaden warranty support.
But with scams like this likely to be just the tip of the iceberg, it's clear the fruity tech titan has a lot more to worry about in China than appeasing the authorities. ®
COMMENTS
Re: Sounds familiar
The difference is Apple have taken parts of FreeBSD etc. and it's cost the writers NOTHING yet Apple have also given code etc. back to the FreeBSD project - Darwin, launchd etc. etc. - FreeBSD is better as a result. You are comparing Apples with Pears.
Apple the victim
Ya know, for just a moment, I almost felt sorry for Apple.
Anyone else and I would have felt sorry.
Re: Sounds familiar
Is this anything like a lollipop?
Same answer - No
Re: Apple the victim
> So, just because it's Apple, you wish them ill?!
Yes.
Re: Seller beware
quote: "Yeah dead funny - let's celebrate crime - oh it's not so funny when it happens to you or someone you know or a company you work for."
Since the consumer protection legislation in most countries allows for a full refund if the goods are not as advertised (e.g. lump of clay instead of Apple iPad), I think the consumer is going to be fine in this circumstance.
The company that neglected to check what they were refunding, on the other hand, should probably have had a decent returns process defined? You know, one where they check the returned product to ensure it was in a working state, and not something unusable that has been carefully packaged back up?
Crime is crime, but there are certain crimes (like this type of confidence trick) that can be trivial to avoid if you apply a little intelligence. In the case of corporations, this can be in the form of a well written and carefully implemented returns policy (e.g. "sorry, no refund before we open the box and check it"). The "box of spuds" selling technique is as old as time, it's not like it was only invented last year.
Caveat Emptor works both ways, if you work for a company that accepts returns from customers I would suggest you need to be at least as careful as someone purchasing from the public. Conmen have even less scruples ripping off companies than they do ripping off consumers ;)
