|
CAAST launches friendly anti-piracy program
28 September, 2004
by Dave Chappelle
The Canadian Alliance Against Software Theft (CAAST) has
released the results of a Decima Research survey that found
that Canadian employees are increasing the risk of software
piracy on workplace computer systems.
Some users admitted to putting software on systems with no
administrator knowledge. Even though only 10 per cent would
admit to it, 37 per cent said they saw nothing wrong with
it.
"Even a small organization can be crippled or even put
out of business by the installation of unauthorized software,"
said Al Steel, past president and director, CAAST.
"Glitches happen, and can cause tremendous turmoil.
If you lose Accounts Receivables for example, that can mean
the difference between paying staff on time or not."
The survey found that one employee in ten admitted to installing
software from outside sources without the knowledge of the
IT department. And that's just the percentage who admit it.
While anything not installed by or with permission from the
IT department is unauthorized, not all unauthorized software
is unlicensed, or pirated. If it happens to be pirated software,
then an audit could find the company liable for fines and
damages created.
"It could be a simple freeware game," said Steel.
"It could be a pirated copy from other parts of the
world that is embedded with spyware or a virus. These pose
a huge detriment to the employer. Anybody who has ever had
a nasty virus will understand that these things can crop up,
and it only takes one person to load it before it's all through
the network system, and passed on via email."
The survey release coincides with the launch of the CAAST
Software Audit Campaign in Ontario from September 27 to October
15.
CAAST is trying to increase awareness of Ontario businesses
about using only fully licensed software, and to warn of the
risks faced if even one employee installs pirated software.
During this period, CAAST will have an information hotline
set up for businesses and numerous software audit tools will
be made available through its website, www.caast.org.
"This is a friendly campaign, with tons of information
for owners, IT personnel, employees and individuals on how
to conduct their business from a safe computing viewpoint,"
said Steel.
"The campaign includes a poster, and number of tools
on the CAAST website allow the owner or responsible systems
person to perform an audit, check all software, and also policies
that put in place an education program for employees, and
best practices for loading and using software on company systems."
When questioned on the rationale behind the unauthorized
installations, 37 per cent of the respondents felt there was
nothing wrong with doing so, while 26 per cent felt it was
more convenient than going through proper channels to acquire
the software.
The survey found that 42 per cent of employees say they have
never been briefed about their company's policies regarding
downloading, installing, or using unlicensed software on workplace
computers.
While 31 per cent of employees said they believed they would
be discouraged from suggesting the use of unlicensed software
as a means of saving money for their company, a surprising
27 per cent said they were unsure of their employer's position
on the issue.
The members of CAAST feel it is important for businesses
to mitigate the risks of software piracy in the workplace
by placing a greater emphasis on employee education regarding
company software management policies.
|
