The Effects of Software Piracy

Many people are not aware of the negative effects of software piracy. A person who purchase a pirated software is not only breaking the law, but also runs the risk of infecting their computer with a harmful virus or other malicious items. Software piracy is the illegal copying or distribution of software that is copyrighted. Any of the following acts are considered software piracy by the Business Software Alliance (BSA): "copying, downloading, sharing, selling, or installing multiple copies onto personal or work computers."

Significance

Some users are mistakenly under the impression that the software they purchase is owned by them. Therefore they believe, at the very least, they can install the software on as many of their personal machines as they like, which is referred to in the industry as "softlifting." The fact is, in most cases, the software is actually licensed to the end-user by the owner who has a copyright on the product. The agreement is called EULA, or the End-user License Agreement. It states the terms and conditions for the product

Effects

On a global basis, the BSA and the Software and Information Industry Association have estimated software piracy by businesses around the globe is as high as 40 percent. In the United States the figure is 23 percent. The effects of software piracy can be far-reaching. Consumers who purchase counterfeit software receive no guarantee that they will not upload viruses to their computer systems.

Also, consumers cannot take advantage of benefits, such as software support, guarantees, discounted upgrades and fixes, and maintenance releases. Software companies, developers and software retailers are affected by the lost of profits. The United State's economy loses about 9 billion; worldwide, 400,000 jobs could be created with a 10 percent reduction in the piracy rate, according to BSA.

Types

Generally, software piracy occurs in three forms: unlicensed use, counterfeit sales and hard drive-uploading. Unlicensed use takes place when organizations (employees) or individuals, make duplicates of their licensed software to share with others and completely ignore the licensing requirement. It can also involve the installation of the software on more machines than it's licensed or peer-to-peer file sharing.

Counterfeit sales of software consist of the illegal act of duplicating software, which is copyrighted, with the intent of selling it online or on the street. Hard disk uploading occurs when companies or individual install unauthorized copies of the software onto the disk of computer as an incentive for the buyer to purchase the machine.

Penalties

For anyone caught selling pirated software, the penalties are: 1) federal statutory damages up to $150,000 per violation; 2) felony prosecution with fines as much as $250,000 and prison sentences up to five years and 3) the copyright owner is entitled to actual damages and the recovery of proceeds from any illegal activity.

Warnings

Anytime you purchase any software, keep the following items in mind are: 1) You should always receive a licensing agreement. 2) Make sure you are buying the software from a reputable retailer. 3) The license for "used" software cannot be transferred. 4) "Restricted use" identifies software issued for educational use, trial versions or not-for-resale. It should not be sold in any manner. 5) Legitimate software should be contained in brand-packaging, not generic plastic jewel cases or so other package. Some software companies, like Microsoft, have a Certificate of Authenticity (COA) on the packaging of their product.

Being mindful of the source of the software you are purchasing can help to lessen the negative effects of software piracy on consumers and the software industry.

References

• Protect Yourself From Piracy
• Software piracy
• Business Software Alliance