Software Piracy At the Workplace? 1006
An anonymous reader writes "What does one do when a good portion of the application software at your workplace is pirated? Bringing this up did not endear me at all to the president of the company. I was given a flat 'We don't pirate software,' and 'We must have paid for it at some point.' Given that I was only able to find one burnt copy of Office Pro with a Google-able CD-Key, and that version of Office is on at least 20 computers, I'm not convinced. Some of the legit software in the company has been installed on more than one computer, such as Adobe Acrobat. Nevertheless I have been called on to install dubious software on multiple occasions. As for shareware, what strategies do you use to convince management to allow the purchase of commonly used utilities? If an installation of WinZip reports thousands of uses, I think the software developer deserves a bit o' coin for it. When I told management that WinZip has a timeout counter that counts off one second per file previously opened, they tried to implement a policy of wait for it, do something else, and come back later, rather than spend the money. Also, some software is free for home and educational use only, like AVG Free. What do you when management ignores this?"
Report them to the Software Business Alliance (Score:0, Interesting)
Then when they fire you, sue as a whistle-blower, take all their money, and shut the crooks down.
Could OP (Score:1, Interesting)
Quit the company. Get an attorney. Claim there is a hostile environment because you know they are breaking laws and you are asked to break the laws too, and then report the company to BSA and sue them? (for the hostile work environment)
Re:Different Approach (Score:5, Interesting)
Or, if you are in a position of relative authority (and not as afraid of getting canned) you can quote the $250,000 fines the BSA can assess PER VIOLATION and tell them it would greatly behoove themselves to switch to FOSS alternatives and cover their ass.
Piracy without guns and ships? (Score:5, Interesting)
great argument for free software (Score:2, Interesting)
Offer a solution. If you go to your boss's office and tell him he is a thief he's not going to be happy. But if you get in there and offer a free alternative it should be a good way of bringing things up.
Openoffice can do the job if everybody switch together. 7-zip is a good replacement for winzip. I'm pretty sure lot's of software has free (like in open source) alternative. Try, you'll see where it lead you. :-)
sad, but everyhwere is like this (Score:1, Interesting)
every single company I have ever worked at uses pirated software... and sometimes a lot of it. you're going to be hard pressed to find a company that doesn't.. in my experience...
I worked at one place that had a mirror of usenet servers and got everything pirated.
Re:My job used to be like this.... (Score:5, Interesting)
That said, in my case, I had an advantage - the owner of the company didn't realize what the IT Manager was doing and wasn't terribly happy about it when she found out. In the original questioner's case, however, that might not be the case. If you can't find someone higher than you and/or your manager that's willing to support your efforts to bring the company into compliance, either through replacing existing software with legitimately free alternatives or through purchasing licensing (or some combination of the two), follow what everyone else is saying here: Document like mad, update your CV, and call the BSA.
7 simple guidelines... (Score:5, Interesting)
The best case scenario is that you can migrate them to free software and be hailed a hero. Don't expect it though. Here are the best of the many ideas I've seen posted to slashdot on this recurring topic.
1. Consider putting a lawyer on retainer. Not as expensive as you might think and an hour or so's conversation can ensure that you document all the appropriate recommendations to keep you out of the BSA's sights and do so in a legally admissible fashion.
2. Don't make it look like a crusade so avoid being confrontational. i.e. "We need to find out who uses $software_package so we can put upgrades/support in next year's budget" or "Investigate free-for-commercial-use $kind_of_software to avoid budgeting needs entirely"
3. Document any time you bring it up with your boss. Use email or written word as much as possible. BCC an external email address and/or take backups of your exchanges home. (again, see #1 for region-specific laws)
4. Any time you are given a verbal pat on the head, do an email follow up later and if at all possible put the responsibility of license management on them. "I installed Office on the 2 new-hires' PCs. We have $quantity copies of Office installed to date. Let me know when we are getting close to our license limit as I may be able to remove the software from $clueless_user's PC."
5. List any of your little victories as fiscal savings during reviews or status reports. "Have replaced Adobe Acrobate Suite with $freeware_PDF_exporter, which will lower our licensing overhead by $250/user and allowed for widespread distribution"
6. Be prepared to be thrown under the bus. Companies willing to operate unethically are, by definition, unethical. Even if you never report them to the BSA, someone else might and you, as the IT guy, may be thrown to the wolves. Having that documentation of all the times that the CFO/CEO was stated to be in charge of license management and that you had no knowledge of the licensing limits, plus the fact they knew how many instances of software will at least ensure you get your unemployment and that the BSA won't come after you.
7. If you report them to the BSA, make sure to get the bounty and put your lawyer on notice. The BSA has a vested interest in concealing their informants, but stuff can come out and unethical people do unethical things. They often say or do things that are defamatory in the process. Whistleblower laws should ensure you can get compensation for lost wages, compensation for defamation, damage to career, etc.
WTF? (Score:2, Interesting)
If your companies asset tracking program is that bad and it makes you that uncomfortable, by all means seek more suitable employment but if I was ever checking a reference and it was inferred that the employee had done something like this I would immediately move them off of my list. If you want to do the right thing explain the problem and if they still don't take interest you can explain this is why you'll be seeking employment elsewhere.
Narcing for money (or revenge or misplace moral 'duty') is about as sleazy as using unlicensed software for business.
It depends on your job function... (Score:1, Interesting)
What you SHOULD have done I think depends on what your job function is. If you are paid to be responsible for licensing issues, then yes, you should bring it up. If you are not, then you shouldn't... A regular employee shouldn't be spending their work time nosing around the issue of compliance. Imagine instead if an "I care a lot about strict building codes" software developer or secretary were looking around/inside cube partitions and discovers that the wiring is done slightly incorrectly, but not harmfully, but if directly shown to the city building inspector would force a costly change. The employee would likely be canned or shunned for sharing what amounts to an equivalent concern to the software licensing. You can debate whether the two are "equivalent" (i.e. you might think pirating software is worse than a slight building code violation), but the company/manager's opinion of the question of importance is what matters. They may likely see you as being just as bad as the person complaining about a slight building code violation.
Re:Bide your time (Score:5, Interesting)
The boss may be a sociopath, but even sociopaths can do the right thing if it happens to benefit them the most. Tell the boss that the BSA offers rewards for turning in companies that pirate software. Tell the boss that anyone can turn the company in. Tell him that, if that happens, based on his response to your initial reports and the fact that you are the software guy, you fully expect him to use you as his scapegoat.
Then tell him you can only see two ways out of this dilemma: one, he does the right thing and gets the licenses. Two, you report the company, collect the reward, and find another job. Tell him you don't want to choose the second option, but if he doesn't do the right thing, it is the only way you can protect yourself. Finally, remind him that option two is by far the more expensive option for the company.
At this point he will either become furious and fire you on the spot, gaining you some unemployment, or he will fix things. If he's a real sociopath, though, he may just fix things and then fire you anyway. It's probably best to pull this after you have another potential job lined up.
Re:Bide your time (Score:2, Interesting)
Alternatively, you could refuse to BREAK THE LAW, get fired, and then sue and win. IIRC, most states have wrongful termination laws, where if you are terminated after refusing to break the law for your employer, you can get dollar bills (damages) or your job back (equitable remedy).
Not a lawyer yet. I get licensed next week (passed the bar (woo!). I'm not your lawyer. This is not legal advice.
Make an attempt (Score:2, Interesting)
Make an attempt to switch them over to free for commercial use products as mentioned (e.g. 7-Zip, whatever free PDF software). That might get them into the mood to switch over to more FOSS or pay for licenses once it's shown to be a success. Then ask "what should we do with the remainder of the license issues" that they are more hesitant to switch from (e.g. Office) pointing out that a disgruntled employee or ex-employee could turn them in for a bounty. You want to appear that you are helping them to avoid a potentially huge fine. They will either go along with it or possibly fire you. If they fire you drop a dime and collect additional unemployment benefits.
Re:WTF? (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Bide your time (Score:4, Interesting)
However, 1) just because we are not members of some type of professional society does not mean that we IT workers should hold ourselves to a lower standard than the professions you listed; and 2) to some extent, we do have professional "societies" that many of us belong to -- although admittedly, not quite as formal or as strict as the professions you referenced. How many IT workers hold certifications -- and have those certifications as prerequisites of their jobs? In many cases, prospective IT workers may never get past the HR department without a piece of paper that says MCSE, CCNA, CCIE, etc. Many of those certifications state that if you use ${certificationOrganization}'s software in violation of it's EULA, you will lose your certification...which can make reemployment elsewhere rather difficult.
Re:What do you expect? (Score:3, Interesting)
Because just because you put effort into it doesn't guarantee you can make a profit off of it, even if you intend to do so. Houses are scarce resources; information is reproducible and not scarce. It's not that you don't "deserve" compensation or that it "should" be free, it's that simply that technology is changing everything. Because I put effort into mowing my lawn, does not mean I should be able to charge people for looking at it or making copies of a photograph of it. It's ludicrous to say that you own a particular configuration of 1s and 0s, just as it would be ludicrous to say you own a particular wavelength on the electromagnetic spectrum or particular frequency of sound. Same going with those ridiculous patents on genes/genetic codes.
If houses could be copied and replicated through future technology then I will say the same thing in that case as well.
Re:Bide your time (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Bide your time (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:What do you expect? (Score:2, Interesting)
Bull-shit...no one DESERVES the right to get paid. That's a moral/ethical argument that has nothing to do with reality. It may be true (I hold to it personally...probably in a lesser way than you), but that doesn't matter when reality comes into the picture. Truth is, economically speaking, the MARKET determines who DESERVES to get paid or not...not you or I. The frustrations that many have is the artificial legislation of who deserves pay. It disrupts the entire market and takes the decision-making out of the hands of those who are paying, leaving consumers bitter and angry at the fact that they can't even choose who or what to pay for (hence why people hate taxation time).
At least quit arguing from an emotional standpoint...take the time to make informed and reasonable arguments rather than dragging your moral/ethical standpoints in. I hate some of this crap too, but it doesn't have to be a part of the argument. It sounds like you may have a personal stake in this. If so, think about it from this way...Would it bother you if I demanded that your right to choose be taken away from you because I think that I deserve something? Ya, it might be a little extreme in some cases, but, the arguments that you make really do boil down to such a plea.
Had the same issue at a very large company. (Score:3, Interesting)
I sent an email to the person who should have been in charge and was greeted in much the same way. We had placed a 'free' evaluation copy of winzip in our corporate image and built it out on literally thousands of machines. after being told to 'shut-up' I covered my a$$ with a dated email and then from the public library dropped the BSA and win-zip/niko-mak BOTH an email detailing the issue. The company settled with both for a LARGE payment and cleaned the desktop image of any 'grey-ware' that was free for NON-COMMERCIAL use. Unless you are in a position to be held responsible I'd recommend just doing NOTHING, safer career wise in the long run...
Re:Bide your time (Score:3, Interesting)
I don't know what's worse, that someone is suggesting (as part of an ethics discussion, no less) that you effectively frame another employee, or that said suggestion got modded Insightful.
Re:Bide your time (Score:3, Interesting)
I agree in principle that a good professional society that can help enforce minimum standards of ethical conduct is probably a good idea. (Basically: Have them stated, be prepared to support those who uphold them, and keep accounting of who and where they are being intentionally violated, so that they can be shamed.)
And there doesn't seem to be one. It would probably take a while for one to get fully established, then recognized, and accepted. But that could only happen after one gets started.
So, the next question is: How do we start one?
Re:What do you expect? (Score:2, Interesting)
This intrigues me. If I build a house and then sell it the new owners are free to do whatever they want to it. They can modify it, they can rent it, they can sell it (for profit), they could even destroy it. What about movie scripts (books)? It seems to me the same things are possible and even likely to happen. Why exactly is software different? Should it be different?
Re:What do you expect? (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:What do you expect? (Score:4, Interesting)
Well, the "service" business model doesn't work for everything, for example it wouldn't work with my program for which no support is needed. And as for the "sitting back and getting money for the rest of your life" argument, well so what, it's not the only case where that happens. People get lots of money from doing much less. Are you actually asking for how long are you entitled to receive money from the work you did after you stopped doing anything to it? Sounds like what you're pondering to me! Is it fair to reap the fruits from something you did 20 years ago? What's fair?
The elephant in the room here is that you all want to copy those immaterial works for free, and because of this you come up with bullshit moral justifications to get as much as you can for free. I pirate everything too, but I'm not an hypocrite, I don't try to disguise my not wanting to pay for things I can have for free as a moral war against injustice. You might think it conflicts with me selling software, but to me it doesn't, because there's no morals involved anywhere on either side of the equation. I pirate anything I want cause I need it/want it and I don't have the money for it and even if I did I'd rather not pay for what I can have for free, and on the other hand I need to make money, selling software is one way, and if my sales went down too low for a reason or another I'd look for job (which I'm actually in the process of doing, software sales are too irregular and make me just enough for a very modest living).
Re:Then THEY should get another job (Score:4, Interesting)
"Endless copyright may be wrong but that will change eventually."
I beg to differ. History as well as current trends show that copyright law is getting more and more restrictive, less and less fair, and will continue to do so, UNLESS the people stand up and say, "Enough is ENOUGH!"
That ACTA treaty that is secretly being worked out scares me. The "IP Holders" seem to have all the say on it. As an international treaty, it will trump national law once a nation signs on to it. It seems that "3 strikes and you're out" will be an integral part of the treaty. But, NO ONE KNOWS anything for sure, because the *IAA's of the world are in, and the public is out of any discussion.
Copyright law could conceivably be as bad as anything Orwelle envisioned. It could even require police ware on your computer, which will report anything you do. Insane.
Re:What do you expect? (Score:3, Interesting)
That's just a matter of accounting. The writers could just charge more up-front and end up with the same amount earned at the end of the road.
No, it's more than that. Charging up front means you decide on a value for your time, and once you collect that amount, the transaction is complete.
Charging per copy means the value of your time is unknown. You could sell one copy, or you could sell a million; you did the same amount of work either way, but the amount you get paid can vary wildly. And since there's no upper bound on the (retroactive) value of your time, you'll never be satisfied with any amount.
Think about it. When was the last time a well-known artist or author said "hey, I've made enough money on this work already, I'm going to release it into the public domain"?
The issue is not with how long they're paid, it's with how much they're paid.
The issue is with how they're paid, and how that payment scheme impacts the rest of us.
If writers collected payment up front, and moved on once they'd done their work and gotten paid as agreed, there'd be no need for infringement lawsuits, no royalties or licensing restrictions. That would open the door to free production of derivative works and allow many more people to enjoy the completed work.
Re:Bide your time (Score:4, Interesting)
The problem is that Slashdot has a whole lot of Ayn Rand Assholes [gq.com] floating around. These are people who need to think that they are superior to other people because they worship the magical market, and that it is their job to be exploited because the people above them are better people. To admit that they are being taken advantage of would be to act like "leeches."
Folks, people who do very little and who, despite what they claim, have no particular risk suck up most of your money. Organizations are team efforts, and while I think it's clear that those at the top should make more than those at the bottom, the vast armies of mid- and lower-level workers deserve a much bigger cut of the pie. There is no organization without them--just a bunch of sociopaths having a circle-jerk in a boardroom. "Men of talent" like to believe they don't need "mediocrites," but they most certainly do. An economy only exists when everyone is playing.
I have been contemplating joining a union myself. The Japanese education industry is starting to do some pretty crazy things--things that have become commonplace in the US, to the detriment of our system. They are attempting to keep us all on one-year contracts. This is a great deal for them, because they can fire people as enrollment rises and falls, but it means that one never knows if he can finish a research project--research being a type of marketing for a university, so it's not just for the researcher--and makes it very hard to get started. Furthermore, it hurts loyalty and productivity. When my school asks me to do things, the zeal with which I do it has a lot to do with my contract length. Getting involved in a project and then coming to the end of your contract and being let go hurts the project and makes one feel like they have been cheated (it's happened to me). Furthermore, to make sure that they are being fair, schools hold tight to the number of contract renewals they say you can have. It doesn't matter how beneficial your presence, they open themselves to legal liability if they let you stay, because someone else who isn't may sue. There was actually a panic and scramble at the end of my contract at my last place, because there was no one who could replace me. My boss tried to work out a deal to keep me, but administration made the (absolutely correct) liability point and off I went, and the project died after lots of time and money spent.
COLLECTIVE BARGAINING FIXES PROBLEMS LIKE THIS.
There is nothing wrong with asserting yourself and demanding a bigger cut of the pie--executives do it all the time! That's business!
Re:Since you brought it up... You're liable (Score:3, Interesting)
You're liable, but you could fix it.
Would recommend the asker take three tacts simultaneously:
1: Call a lawyer to verify that the below oughta work.
2: Move everything you can away from proprietary platforms, but be realistic - You'll just end up canned if you start replacing desktops and office suites without serious buy-in from all levels of the company, but they'd have to be braindead not to let you at least get the servers legal for free. Likewise, 7zip over Winzip, etc. Thorough implementation of step 2 can, hopefully, greatly lessen the cost of step 3.
3: Don't call the BSA - Call the nearest Microsoft sales rep and ask him to come in and give you a price on a site license to get you legal. Let them decide if they care about what's going on if management tells them where they can put it, but I'd be surprised if they did. Right now they're just hearing from some lowly service provider. Get the vendor on site, and they're staring at a multi-billion dollar behemoth that's capable of pursuing legal action against them but all but certainly won't if you play ball [microsoft.com]
Whistleblowers deserve some protection, but when there's means available to get a company caught up on their licenses without bringing in the imminent risk of major lawsuits/in a way that's beneficial all 'round and you still call in the trade-group-police, you're doing your employer a grave disservice. Again, go to the vendor first. There's no way to be 100% sure this will work and allow you to keep your job, but it's worth trying before you jump ship.
Re:Contact the BSA & request an audit (Score:1, Interesting)
You obviously have no idea what you are talking about.
The BSA currently holds powers of attorney for MS, Adobe, Symantec, etc. You will never get a letter from Mircrosoft. The BSA will send you a letter saying that you need to do an audit and report it back to them. They will threaten to sue you should you not comply. They will also advise you that you can't simply purchase licenses to cover as you suggest and that any attempt to remove offending software will also result in you being sued. The BSA will allow you to do your own audits, so long as you use BSA approved auditing software. They are even kind enough to provide you with links to free versions.
So you cannot make any changes to your system, such as reimaging a drive, as they will consider that "Destruction of Evidence". IANAL so I don't know if that is actually true, but I do know the BSA explicitly states that. Once the audit is done the BSA will submit a bill for damages, not licenses. You need to come compliant on your own and will have to submit that plan to the BSA. As part of your settlement agreement you also have to agree to regular audits and give the BSA the right to surprise inspections whenever they want for the next 2 - 5 years.
End result.. the company gets dicked out of enormous fines and still has to come compliant. I have yet to hear of the BSA settling for less than 100k, and they seem to always find something in their audits. They also get to choose and pick which licenses they think are valid. For example the BSA refuses to accept any licenses purchased via Ebay reguardless of whether they are legit or not. You can certaintly fight this in court if you choose to. The BSA will be more than happy to point out to you that they can keep you tied up in court for some time and that your lawyer fees will soon add up to more than just taking it in the ass and settling with them.
Yes I have gone through it, and while the company I was working for at the time was in the wrong, the penalties imposed by the BSA were excessive, and their attitude arrogant, condescending and abusive. They are the perfect vehicle for exacting revenge on any company requardless of guilt.