I commiserate. Unfortunately, this is a daily struggle for some, particularly in networking. The world's largest vendor of network appliances, Cisco, has the w

I commiserate. Unfortunately, this is a daily struggle for some, particularly in networking. The world's largest vendor of network appliances, Cisco, has the worst problem with unauthorized equipment I've ever seen. Even the US federal government, probably Cisco's largest customer, is constantly assailed by unathorized gear from authorized resellers. I'm even aware of companies factoring in project lead time for handling licensing problems for this reason. Still, this is just one example, and I'm certain many manufacturers have this problem, though it surely varies proportional to the price of the good. Regardless, caveat emptor, and know the provenance of what you purchase. Best of luck.