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Help Combat Piracy
Software piracy is the illegal copying of software for distribution or resale, to friends, colleagues, or online. Arguably, the most dangerous form of software piracy relates to what many people consider simple personal use; buying a software program and then installing it on more than one personal machine. Many people are not even aware that what they are installing is technically pirated software!
People may not know the real risk that pirated software poses to your online safety. If someone isn’t running a legitimate version of their software, he or she is denied access to crucial updates. Software manufacturers issue these updates, called patches, on a regular basis to fix security flaws before they can be widely exploited by criminal hackers. Skilled hackers can manipulate the flaws to spread viruses, which can corrupt data or impede a system’s performance, or install trojans, which allow cybercriminals remote access to a machine.
In a quest to save money or beat release dates, people might try downloading software from unauthenticated websites claiming to provide it for free. They may think they’re getting a bargain, but are they aware of the legal and financial costs they might have to pay for unintentionally using pirated software? Not only are there implications to being caught, but the software could be lacking critical updates and risks exposing their personal identity, finances and sensitive information to theft and malware.
Registered software users are kept informed of upcoming patches. Regular scans will ensure the speedy recognition of malware in the case of a zero-day attack, a type of attack that exploits a hole about which the software vendor is not yet aware.
Tips to ensure you are using legitimate software:

• Download software from credible and authorized online shops. Better still, purchase directly from the publisher’s website
• Register your software with its maker to receive critical updates to your program, including patches to security flaws that are discovered by the software publisher
• Don’t install the software on more than the licensed number of PC’s. For example, a 3 PC license product should only be installed on up to 3 PC’s.
• Always check the software version you have purchased or installed to verify it is not a promotional or demo version
• Check the ‘trust mark’ as well as the retailer’s record while purchasing software online. If there is any doubt, conduct web searches about the site or the vendor to determine its legitimacy
• Look for proof of authenticity, such as original disks, manuals, licensing agreements, service policies, warranties and a security seal
• Make sure that you’re also running legitimate security software, like PC Tools’ Spyware Doctor with AntiVirus, to stay protected against known and unknown threats