Millions of fraudulent websites and traders are available who deal in pirated copies against thunderbolt discounts or totally free of cost. But should money be the ultimate decision maker? Ideally, it should not be in the digital world if you are handling any form of private or personal information. Reetwika gives us invaluable tips to avoid Safo Piracy, in the weekly column, exclusively for Different Truths.
Safo (or Software) Piracy is a burning concern for the global economy nowadays. World’s best brains spend thousands of hours in developing a high-end application and it gets replicated in minutes through the dark web. We, the end users too, facilitate the con economy to boom through continuous free downloads, uploads and generous shares of different software through various offline and online media.
Millions of fraudulent websites and traders are available who deal in pirated copies against thunderbolt discounts or totally free of cost. But should money be the ultimate decision maker? Ideally it should not be in the digital world if you are handling any form of private or personal information, financial results, banking info, health records, national secrets, power transmission and distribution, client or employee databases, transport systems, traffic signal booths, books, films, music, intellectual properties or any damn thing in the world which holds value for you, your family and/or the country.
Safo piracy can take place primarily in six ways:
1. Installation of illegitimately obtained licensed software on a single domestic computer for personal use
2. Abuse legitimate personal license for commercial use
3. Abuse single commercial license purchased by installing a locally cloned copy on multiple devices connected over LAN
4. Implementation of forged key generators to produce a realistic serial number which unlocks a trial or evaluation version of the original software, thus beating the copyright protection
5. Free, discounted or illegal distribution (online/offline/reselling) of a licensed software for personal or commercial use
6. Free, discounted or illegal distribution (online/offline/reselling) of a pirated version of a licensed software for personal or commercial use
Some of the most devastating dangers of pirated software are often overlooked by us. But it’s the need of the hour to give an eye to the degree of havoc they can cause if not actioned on time.
Devastating Virus Attacks
While attempting to download unlicensed versions of licensed softwares for free, you will often land upon an infected website full of malware, malicious cookies, bots, and spyware. The moment you click on any 
executable button there (ex: Download, Open, Run, Click Here, etc.), the site starts injecting viruses into your machine. And it needs no explanation, what a virus can cause if it gets embedded in your device. And then arises the million-dollar question – does the software you just downloaded serve the purpose it claimed in the beginning?
Fatal Outputs
Have you ever wondered, how would it impact you if your hospital uses a pirated version of ECG, EEG, MRI, USG, and other critical medical devices? They all run on computers and automated monitoring systems nowadays. Hardly anything is manual, especially in the health and medical sector. Can you rely on the output of such plagiarised programs for your treatment?
Compromised Device Performance
Pirated software not only bring in complimentary malware, but they also affect the overall performance of your device by encroaching available memory, processing speed, network bandwidth, browser add-ins and so on. They may also crash your hard disk or motherboard depending on the infection type. You may verify the number of unwanted setup files which got silently installed on your PC by visiting the Program Files folder after downloading a counterfeit software.
Missing Important Patches
Even if the pirated version of a licensed software performs the same quality tasks on the face, the most dangerous consequence is the unavailability of important security patches and fixes released by the original company from time to time. Every software has multiple vulnerabilities when created (it’s true even for world-class solutions like MS Windows) and they undergo regular penetration tests for enhancements. It is very important to enable auto updates for any software you use to ensure that the security loopholes are timely repaired. Unfortunately, this never happens with pirated versions. So, you always run the risk of becoming outdated or exposed to severe threats which might turn costlier than the purchase value of original software.
Identity and Data Thefts
Who can save your confidential data stored on the computer if it’s already compromised? Data theft is one of the most expensive consequences of Safo piracy which often opens a backdoor to Trojan Horses (the worst form of malware). They silently keep stealing your information and when done, turns into a ransomware. Even if the data resides on your machine, you are unable to access it because someone else has put a lock on your door and you don’t have the duplicate key. The only way to get rid of it is either to pay the ransom or forego the locked data – both will definitely be way pricier than the cost of procurement of original software.
Irrecoverable Financial Frauds
Many nationalised banks unknowingly use pirated versions of operating systems in their core banking machines. Or they keep using replicated copies of one licensed version (may be bought for the server) and install it untruthfully in all other client machines connected over the same local area network. It might not be a deliberate business decision but the manager could have been cheated by the local vendor who has signed the maintenance contract with the bank. He may not be an authorized reseller or dealer of the 
software manufacturer but poses to the bank as if so. He then sells cloned copies of the software and operating system at hugely cheaper prices than original copy which the bank continues to use without being aware of the ensuing fatality.
Have those banks ever thought what will be the degree of impact if any of the machines get compromised? It can happen through insiders, malware, lack of security patches, outdated software, inherent OS vulnerabilities, infected USBs, compromised network or through any other threat agent. Whatever it may be, the consequence could lead to irrecoverable monetary and goodwill losses. It may cost crores of financial frauds within minutes by someone sitting far off from the geographical location of the bank where the breach has occurred.
Criminal Liability
Last but not the least, any user of the pirated software is duly punishable under criminal laws of the land and international norms on grounds of copyright infringement and piracy. Original software makers have different mechanisms to track illegal use of their products. They mainly target industrial trespassers, commercial users, publishers, resellers, cyber café owners, and dealers who unofficially trade in piracy. If you happen to fall under this umbrella, you may anticipate immediate prosecution by the authorities without being questioned. But that does not mean a domestic user falls out of the scope of law? No. How will it feel to your family if you get arrested on grounds of Safo piracy someday?
It’s always advisable for everyone not to support Safo piracy of any form. If you happen to come across such unlawful usages, take it as your social duty to directly report to the authorities without thinking twice. The original manufacturer and your nation will be grateful to the exhibition of your loyalty.
Please remember to follow my quick tips to avoid hassles of pirated softwares and stay protected:
1. Always purchase original software and only from registered dealers. Not all electronic merchants are 
authorized to resell or trade in original software by the manufacturers.
2. Every software comes with an End User License Agreement (EULA), which specifies the domestic and commercial usage terms of the software as levied by the manufacturer. Do not violate EULA under any circumstances as the breach could attract huge penalties and legal steps against you. Read the terms carefully before installing it on your machine. Hardly anyone of us reads through the lines but it is damn important to avoid punitive impacts of agreement violation.
3. If your system is behaving erratically after a recent pirated software installation, don’t waste your time fixing the PC problems. Instead, immediately uninstall all the counterfeit setup files and run an antivirus scan to clean up the system files. The pirated software can also tamper your system files after a reboot. Formatting could only resolve your issues in such cases and will make you lose all the data stored on a hard drive in the process. So be very careful before restarting your machine after a pirated software installation.
4. Avoid downloading freeware and open source software if you are not sure of their quality and source. Instead, you may download authentic trial or evaluation versions from manufacturer’s website to check performance before making your purchase. These are especially available software with flexible licensing terms for use in educational and research sectors.
5. Ensure compliance with all trial licenses and adhere to the usage terms stringently. Any breach or violation of license terms may lead to severe consequences such as litigation, unliquidated damages, loss of reputation, prosecution etc. It is prudent to take precautionary measures by following the terms than putting yourself at risk.
6. Do not continue using the software after the end of trial period. Intelligent users may be successful in cracking forged purchase keys through key generators but if caught, it will be considered as a serious offence.
7. Never use a trial. Evaluation or domestic version software for business to pose unless it is explicitly permissible as per EULA. Also, a commercially licensed software must not be used at home for personal use. Any form of License abuse is a punishable cybercrime.
8. Do not try to update pirated softwares. The change in default firewall rules will immediately break the crack and you will be in big trouble in no time. This applies to the bootleg image of operating systems as well. Instead, uninstall the package from Program Files and never install it back. Rather, buy yourself an authentic OS from an authorized dealer.
9. It is always advisable to invest in a trusted antivirus along with a strong firewall to prevent your machine from sophisticated cyber-attacks. MS Windows Defender must be enabled for licensed Windows users. It is one of the best malware defenders in the market which comes complimentary with original MS Windows package.
10. Do remember to disable your antivirus protection before installing or uninstalling any pirated software. If it’s on, then the malware protector will at once catch the crack, remove all counterfeit setup files and trigger an automated piracy alarm to the original vendor with your IP address. You can imagine what awaits next for you.
Pirated softwares may be cheap or even totally free, but it’s never wise to take the risk of associated threats! Be a conscious user and educated buyer.
©Reetwika Banerjee
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