Anyone tempted by the lure of cheap iPhone charger must know the risks before tapping the buy button or handing over cash at the local market. That's the latest alert from the team at Electrical Safety First who say consumers could be placing themselves at serious harm by not opting for official plugs from the likes of Apple.

In the past, it's been pretty easy to tell if a plug was fake due to its weight. Apple power packs are heavy due to the premium materials used to make them. Counterfeit plugs are usually a lot lighter, but it seems crooks are now using a sneaky trick to convince consumers to buy their accessories.

Electrical Safety First says it has found metal weights are being added to bulk up these fake refillers and give them a more premium and Apple-like feel.

Although that might not sound alarming, the electrical charity says these metal weights pose a significant safety risk to the user. 

"Within a genuine adapter there is sufficient separation between internal components to ensure that the incoming 240 volts from the mains electricity supply does not come into contact with the USB output connector, the end used to charge your device," Electrical Safety First explained.

The investigation found these metal weights seriously compromised that electrical separation, meaning the consumer was at risk of coming into contact with a very harmful level of voltage.

Of 22 samples of the 116 that underwent further internal investigation 68 percent were found to have metal weights inside. These metal weights also presented a risk of short circuiting the device increasing the risk of electric shock and fire. 

“Often with counterfeits and substandard lookalikes the dangers are entirely hidden within the plastic mould of the adapter, so consumers are none the wiser as to how little care has been given to manufacturing the device. It is not uncommon for substandard or fake devices to be used unknowingly by consumers until they either stop working or worse, cause an incident such as an electric shock or fire,” Electrical Safety First's Luke Osborne adds. 

Although they will be cheaper, buying a fake adapter is a bad idea that could put your devices, home and your personal safety at risk.

If you are worried, it's a good idea to only buy from Apple or one of the recommended third-party suppliers, such as Belkin or Anker.

How to spot a fake Apple power adapter: 

Plug pins: 

Plug pin finish and its material is another obvious indicator that the product is either counterfeit or substandard. The finish on the plug pins on a genuine charger is high quality, matt, and uniform. On counterfeit adapters, the finish is usually glossy or shiny with surface imperfections.

Text and markings:  

Look out for poor-quality markings and spelling mistakes. Genuine Apple adapters have a solid Apple logo and well-defined wording. Genuine Apple markings are clean and legible. Many of the counterfeit and lookalike models inspected had poor or ill-defined logos and markings.

Online listings:

Sellers of legitimate branded goods don’t need to over emphasise that the product is genuine. Online listings that overstate the authenticity of a product should be approached with caution.