Software piracy is referred to the illegal use, copying or distribution of copyrighted software. Software piracy is a huge threat to the software industry. It causes a signicant loss of revenue for developers and vendors. Because of piracy, vendors have fewer resources to devote to research and development of new products. Since they earn less prot, they are forced to pass these costs on to their customers. Software companies have tried various techniques to stop software piracy but most of them have remained unsuccessful. They applied for copy- protection which demands the user to enter certain keys or credentials. Today, most software require registration which is mainly online. However, these measures could not stop software piracy. Using pirated software is also risky for users. Aside from the legal consequences of using pirated software, users of pirated software lose some practical benets as well. Pirated software may not work properly or stop working at any time. Furthermore, pirated software users cannot access customer support, upgrades, technical documentation, training, and bug xes.

Software Piracy – Definition

Software piracy is the act of stealing software that is legally protected. This stealing includes copying, distributing, modifying or selling the software.

Copyright laws were originally put into place so that the people who develop software (programmers, writers, graphic artists, etc.) would get the proper credit and compensation for their work. When software piracy occurs, compensation is stolen from these copyright holders.

Software Piracy Regulation

Computer piracy is illegal and constitutes a federal crime. The monetary penalties for those who break this law can reach up to $150,000 per instance of copyright violation.

End-User License Agreement

The End-User License Agreement (EULA) is a license used for most software. It is a contract between the manufacturer and/or author and the end user. This agreement defines rules for software use and not every agreement is the same. One common rule in most EULAs prohibits users from sharing the software with others.

Types of Software Piracy

There are five main types of software piracy. This variety of pirating techniques explains how some individuals purposely pirate software while others may unknowingly be an accomplice.

Softlifting

Softlifting is when someone purchases one version of the software and downloads it onto multiple computers, even though the software license states it should only be downloaded once. This often occurs in business or school environments and is usually done to save money. Softlifting is the most common type of software piracy.

Client-server overuse

Client-server overuse is when too many people on a network use one main copy of the program at the same time. This often happens when businesses are on a local area network and download the software for all employees to use. This becomes a type of software piracy if the license doesn’t entitle you to use it multiple times.

Hard disk loading

Hard disk loading is a type of commercial software piracy in which someone buys a legal version of the software and then reproduces, copies or installs it onto computer hard disks. The person then sells the product. This often happens at PC resale shops and buyers aren’t always aware that the additional software they are buying is illegal.

Counterfeiting

Counterfeiting occurs when software programs are illegally duplicated and sold with the appearance of authenticity. Counterfeit software is usually sold at a discounted price in comparison to the legitimate software.

Online Piracy

Online piracy, also known as Internet piracy, is when illegal software is sold, shared or acquired by means of the Internet. This is usually done through a peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing system, which is usually found in the form of online auction sites and blogs.