Remember this?
.....But between 1999 and 2007, many capacitors suffered from premature failure, causing devices to malfunction, overheat, or even explode. This phenomenon was known as the capacitor plague, and it was a widespread issue with faulty electrolytic capacitors which resulted in premature failure of various electronic devices.
The root cause of the capacitor plague was traced to a bad electrolyte formula that was used in non-solid aluminium electrolytic capacitors. These electrolytes were made with a stolen and incomplete formula from a Japanese company, and they caused corrosion and gas generation inside the capacitors, leading to bulging, leaking, or bursting.
The bad electrolyte formula had been stolen from Rubycon Corporation by an ex-employee who then sold it to several Taiwanese electrolyte manufacturers. The Taiwanese companies then supplied the faulty capacitors to many well-known brands of electronics, especially motherboards, video cards, and power supplies of personal computers.
The capacitor plague affected equipment from Dell, Apple, HP, IBM, and many others. The problem was first reported by specialist magazines in 2002, and then gained public attention through blogs and online communities. The capacitor plague has affected equipment manufactured up to at least 2007.
