On counterfeit, seeking known brands or products that are thought to be reputable can be a tough strategy.

Same as parent, I'm amazed by the quality I get, but I'm also not looking for brands or vendors that try to piggy back on some halo effect.

That means choosing carefully what to buy from where, pouring over the specs and reviews for every purchase, but as I'm getting products that just don't exist elsewhere, that's a mental burden I'm fine with.

Funny the same day we were commenting about this, a story broke out of long beach that smugglers were using counterfeit container seals (possibly made in China!) to fool CBP inspectors.

Deviant Ollam did a video about it.