With logistical support from ABES, Federal District police seize equipment with illegal copies of computer programs
Last Tuesday, September 23, a police action to combat software piracy in Brasília (DF), led by Dr. Luiz Henrique Sampaio, chief delegate of the Federal District's Office for Combating Crimes Against Intangible Property, approached a computer dealer and seized 01 USB flash drive containing illegal copies of computer programs.
“Although the number of seizures is small, police authorities have focused on containing the proliferation power of each media (which can be easily copied and multiplied) and not just on the volume of suspicious material”, comments Jorge Sukarie, president of the Brazilian Association das Software Companies (ABES), an entity that offers logistical support to police authorities in these search and seizure operations in various regions of Brazil.
47% of PCs already leave computer stores pre-infected
A recent study by IDC, released in March this year, reveals that about 47% of computers purchased from computer resellers in Brazil are already “pre-infected”, with “malware”, including “Trojans” and other powerful viruses. “Consumers should pay attention and request proof of software licenses installed on their computer. This is because, in many cases, these stores sell equipment with pirated computer programs already installed, without the consumer suspecting that they are being harmed”, highlights Sukarie.
Unfair competition
According to a study by BSA – The Software Alliance in partnership with IDC, Brazil suffers losses of US$ 2.848 billion from piracy, which removes 20 thousand jobs annually in the country. For ABES, by infringing copyright, computer resellers promote unfair competition in the market in which they operate, and can be criminally liable with a penalty that can vary from six months to two years of imprisonment or receive compensation with amounts that reach three thousand times the price of each program used or played.
Anonymous Reporting
ABES, in partnership with BSA – Business Software Alliance, developed an Anonymous Whistleblower portal against software piracy, available at http://www.denunciepirataria.org.br/. “We also have a free application on the portal on Android and iOS platforms”, completes Sukarie.
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