Pro Audio Counterfeiters Busted, Get Prison and $1.1 Million in Fines

China (March 13, 2025)—A Chinese criminal network that manufactured and distributed counterfeit pro-audio microphones, headphones and amplifiers throughout Southeast Asia has paid the price, with multiple individuals sentenced to prison time and fines totaling $1.1 million USD.

In a statement, Shure, Inc. announced that it took part in an operation with two other, unnamed audio manufacturers that lead to multiple simultaneous raids in Guangdong by Chinese authorities, followed by the eventual convictions of members of the criminal organization.

Sadly, counterfeit pro audio gear is nothing new. Whether it’s high-end audio interfaces, line arrays or even fake P.A. boxes used to smuggle meth and heroin, the manufacture and sale of phony audio gear has long been a worldwide problem. Fraudulent equipment can be a safety hazard since it is quickly made from shoddy parts that don’t need to meet safety standards—or even work; counterfeit gear can put crews, the public and even other equipment at risk.

Shure first became aware of the network’s clandestine counterfeiting nearly two years ago, in May 2023, and soon discovered that the group was manufacturing and then distributing fake audio equipment to unwitting customers in Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines. In all, the fraudulent gear was sold on more than 80 online stores that the group maintained.

Shure and the other audio manufacturers worked with IP services business Rouse and its strategic partner firm, Lusheng, to launch coordinated actions against the counterfeit operation. As a result, that August, the Guangdong Province Public Security Bureau (PSB) launched simultaneous raids against the organization, seizing a variety of counterfeit products at several locations.

In the months that followed, the PSB discovered that a specific trading company was at the heart of the network; through forensic accounting, authorities found the group had sold more than $1.7 million USD in counterfeit goods from various brands, including nearly $900,000 USD of pseudo-Shure products.

However, it’s only recently that the case came to a close; in December, 2024, seven suspects were sentenced to prison, with some getting as much as four-and-a-half years behind bars. They also face fines totaling $1.1 million USD. Shure reports that it and another brand additionally reached settlement agreements with the suspects for “considerable compensation.”

Unsurprisingly, the best way for consumers and businesses to protect themselves from purchasing phony products is to only buy from authorized dealers.