How Unlicensed Software Occurs

When conducting a software audit, the BSA has identified four areas where the use of unlicensed software might occur. It is worth spending particular time on studying the areas below when completing your Software Audit Return:

• Copying by an end-user
  Often users will copy software onto more than one machine to help them work. This can easily lead to you having more copies of the software than you have licenses. You'll need to identify the duplication and reach a decision as to whether you need the extra licenses and buy them or you delete the copies from your systems.
• Software downloaded from the Internet
  The Web has made it easy to acquire software. If there is no company policy in place, employees may load the latest shareware or entertainment software onto their computer. Not only is this unauthorised software difficult to account for in terms of licensing, it represents a major threat as it is far more likely to be unstable or contain viruses.
• Pre-loaded unlicensed software
  This happens when unscrupulous suppliers provide you with new pre-loaded hardware. You should always demand all the documentation and media that would accompany a properly licensed software application. If an audit identifies unlicensed software that you have acquired by this means the likelihood is that you will have to pay for the software again.
• Software Counterfeiting
  This is the illegal duplication and sale of copyrighted material with the intent of directly imitating the copyrighted product. In the case of packaged software, it is common to find counterfeit copies of the CDs or diskettes incorporating the software programs, as well as related packaging, manuals, license agreements, labels, registration cards and security features.  Make sure that you purchase your software from reputable sources to minimise the risk of being sold counterfeit software.

Spotting all the places where unlicensed software may be in your company may seem like a daunting task, but using one of our free audit tools available for download will automate a great deal of the process - putting the information you need at your fingertips when filling in your Return.

Complete your online Software Audit Return now.