February 2013
Featured in this insight: Business & enterprise, Financial services, IT & telecommunications
Market research finds SMEs at risk from opting for pirated software: Following a recent survey of 250 small to medium-sized businesses in the UK, the Business Software Alliance (BSA) has issued a report which warns of the dangers of choosing illegal computer programs.
The market research carried out by the BSA found that the majority of UK SMEs have bought or downloaded pirated software, leading in some cases to serious security problems.
As many as 41% of small companies which bought pirated applications believe they had their personal details used for identity theft, while 28% suspect that their bank accounts were raided as a result.
Furthermore, the BSA discovered that 33% of the respondents who opted for pirated software had additional money debited from their account, and 41% said the products they bought were either delivered late or not at all.
Nevertheless, almost a quarter of small businesses said they would consider buying illegal software if they thought it would save them money, with one in five small businesses having used a ‘key generator’ to fake their licenses.
Despite this risk-taking, the survey also showed that approximately half of SMEs replaced the illegal software once it was discovered, and 27% later paid for a legal software key.
View more of our sector specific insights: Business & enterprise, Financial services, IT & telecommunications
