Sparkfun with 30 products using FTDI parts have a reasonable response to the issue
https://www.sparkfun.com/news/1629
A. They don't think they have a problem
B. If it turns out they do it is their problem
Yess, yess you finally got it IT'S THE PEOPLE BUYING THE PARTS AND PUTTING THEM INTO THEIR PRODUCTS that need to be targeted, worked with NOT end users who are non the wiser.
FTDI's logic was thus: we want to sell more chips and we don't like people faking our chips and using our driver. Oh nice we have found a vulnerability in the fake chip. What shall we do ?
2 scenarios:
1) as they have done, brick the fakes, and by doing so punish the end user of a product that may be well out of warranty for something they had no part in. They have no idea why they device broke and i guess FTDI hope they won't buy another one from the same supplier so hopefully get a genuine one next time so FTDI hope. The supplier of the product is non the wiser and may now be using genuine FTDI chips so FTDI shoot themselves in the foot. As no one knows what the problem is people keep buying fakes anawares although by this point the problem is probably found and corrected but potentially millions of unsuspecting and innocent users are punished and financially damaged for products they bought in good faith and are already in service.
2) FTDI stop their driver from working with a fake chip so the device can't be installed as it now has no driver support (and they could have quietly found a way to distinguish so historic devices carry on but new ones won't work). If the supplier of the equipment have not figured this out yet they get loads of returns and innocent customers get their money back and no hard feeling with a supplier that may also not be at fault and if that supplier is now using genuine chips they don't feel so bad and keep using the chips. The suppliers will then seek redress from their chips suppliers and maybe involve FTDI and the source of fakes is found and people prosecuted. Everyone comes out on top and counterfeiters are hopefully caught.
What FTDI did was selfish and stupid