Post by Peter Han, Vice President, Microsoft U.S. OEM Division.
When someone mentions pirated or counterfeit products, most people immediately think of designer purses, luxury watches or bootlegged movies. But there’s another category of piracy that is growing at an alarming rate worldwide, putting consumers and businesses at risk: software piracy.
How big is the problem? Consider that a whopping 42 percent of all PCs around the world run counterfeit or unlicensed software, which puts those users at risk for spyware, malware and viruses that can lead to identity theft, loss of data and system failures.
Earlier this year, we asked unsuspecting consumers to inspect two pieces of software, one genuine and one counterfeit, and identify which was the fake. The resulting dialogue was fascinating and illustrated just how difficult it can be to tell the difference.
To help educate consumers, we spoke with Dinis Couto, Microsoft’s general manager of WW anti-piracy, for his insights on the issue and how users can protect themselves. Watch the video below to check out his commentary as well as clips from our “Find the Fake” interviews (you can also view it in the News Center).
Partner resources for helping ensure your customers are using properly licensed, genuine software:
- Genuine solutions https://mspartner.microsoft.com/en/us/Pages/Licensing/get-genuine-solutions.aspx
- Antipiracy https://mspartner.microsoft.com/en/us/Pages/Licensing/antipiracy.aspx
- OEM reseller licensing https://mspartner.microsoft.com/en/us/Pages/Licensing/oem-reseller-licensing.aspx
Together, we can protect our consumers and businesses!