Yeah, right, its the victims fault.
Ive been designing in FTDI devices for years. They work first try, they're cheap, the drivers are excellent, support is good. If I need a USB interface device, I only buy FTDI-based adapters because, well, all the same reasons. Plus they're faster than anything else Ive tested (a serial port at 1mbps can be iffy - only a few do it reliably and they all have FTDI bridges).
Given all that, why should FTDI support knock-off crap? I dont want the crap on my systems, in my board designs, and the faster I know about it the better. Hell yeah, brick it baby, and let the retailer sort out the counterfeiting mess in their supply chain.
And while we're at it, same for SD Cards. "If they work I dont care", seriously? Another place where counterfeiting is rampant, the knock-offs cant hit speed and reliability targets, if they work at all. Last bulk buy I made at Staples was 70% counterfeit and wasnt close to hitting published specs. And sure the store manager took them back, but Staples Corporate couldnt care less that their supply chain was contaminated. SanDisk and FTDI are *NOT* the scumbags here, its the consumers that dont give a rats ass as long as they save 3 cents, the retailers that make 3 cents extra, and the wholesalers that make 2 cents extra. You, sir, are the scumbag thats the problem.