With all the horror and torment that the world is currently facing, it is nice to find unbelievably hilarious stories, and this is one of them. A man in China has recently been arrested for trying to smuggle, of all things, Intel CPUs. Why are electronics smuggled across country borders, what devices are commonly smuggled, and will recent world events only increase the likelihood of smuggling?

Why are electronics smuggled across country borders?

When the subject of contraband and smuggled items comes up, many will think of Cuban cigars, drugs, and diamonds. While these are often smuggled, it turns out that electronics are just as popular to try and get past customs agents. One of the benefits of purchasing electronics when travelling aboard is that foreign visitors generally do not pay VAT, which allows tourists to get products at discount rates.

However, when returning to their country of origin, they generally must declare their items whose value will be determined and then any relevant taxes paid. Of course, customs in most countries do not care about individual phones or laptops as these are either too difficult to tax or their value does not meet some threshold. This is why in the UK, individuals can bring back several litres of alcohol and so many packs of cigarettes without needing to pay tax.

If customs suspects that someone is bringing in large quantities of a product to sell, then it must be taxed at whatever rate the government has set, as this tax would be levied on any imports. This added tax will often remove a large portion of the profit from any smuggled goods, making them just as expensive as those imported by authorised distributors, which is why smuggling of goods is prevalent.

What electronics are commonly smuggled through customs?

A recent story has been brought to the light of an individual in China who attempted to smuggle electronics past customs with an estimated total value of $50,000. However, this story is utterly hilarious because the individual was caught with 160 Intel 11th and 12th generation CPUs duct-taped to his body via the waist and legs. The customs agents noticed that the individual was walking unusually when passing through the “nothing to declare” area and thus decided to investigate. This revelation has seen the internet dub the smuggler as “The Walking CPU”.

But the story only gets funnier as the individual was smuggling Intel CPUs not just because of their high value but because they use LGA1155 packages. These CPUs do not come with pins but instead contact pads that allow them to be pressed up against surfaces without damaging them. As AMD CPUs currently use pins, this means that AMD is losing competition on the black market to Intel, but this will change when AMD releases its LGA AM5, where it will be “Smuggler Ready”.

On a more serious note, the shortage of semiconductors is seeing some turn to desperate measures as having access to the latest technology can be critical in technological development. Furthermore, the ongoing shortage of semiconductors is seeing record-high prices. The use of bots to purchase parts in bulk before individual consumers have a chance further increases the price as bots can restrict the availability of the latest parts (this has been a particular problem for graphics card manufacturers).

Will recent world events increase the chances of smuggling?

The ongoing war in Ukraine is seeing the west imposing large scale sanctions against Russia and the fear of Chinese power also see their access to technology is restricted. As such, the west could start to see foreign agents entering the West to obtain restricted technologies, which can then be shipped back to their respective countries. There is also no doubt that the semiconductor shortage will also contribute to increased smuggling as customers become increasingly desperate for parts. The rising cost of living combined with increased tax rates will significantly improve the profit margin for smugglers.

But if there is one thing that engineers must be cautious about, it’s counterfeit semiconductors. The restricted stock will see engineers scouring online sources for parts, and there may be a great deal of temptation to purchase from alternative suppliers. However, these sources may likely be selling recycled parts or outright fakes, leading to catastrophic failure.