THURSDAY, March 28, 2024
nationthailand

Campaign launched to stop the use of unlicensed software

Campaign launched to stop the use of unlicensed software

BSA the Software Alliance has launched a campaign to help business leaders address ongoing issues related to the use of unlicensed software.

The campaign, which launches today, March 18, aims to reach thousands of business leaders with messages about the legal, productivity and security benefits of using licensed software.
BSA suggests that thousands of companies in Thailand continue to use unlicensed software assets, posing serious business and security risks. It hopes that the campaign will encourage thousands of companies will legalise their various software products, moving from unlicensed and insecure software to legal software assets.
“Today is all about legalising software and protecting companies from the dangers of unlicensed software,” said BSA I The Software Alliance Senior Director Tarun Sawney. “Our goal is to help business leaders understand the imperative to legalise and to recognise that investing in legalised software is good for their security, good for corporate reputation, good for corporate productivity and good for their bottom line.”
BSA is working with governments in major Asean markets to help the business communities understand the economic benefits of using legal software.
Research suggests that businesses gain an average increase in profits of up to 11 per cent based on legalised software assets and good management of software assets. As a matter of national competitiveness, government leaders are encouraging the business community to convert to legal assets.
“We recognise that companies using legal software perform better, protect data better and bring more benefits to a country,” said Tarun. “Good and profitable corporations must use licensed software assets to protect the interests of their clients, their data and ultimately the health of their business.”
BSA is launching the “Legalise and Protect” campaign this week in Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines. This follows on from a similar campaign in cooperation with the Vietnamese earlier with positive results. Companies targeted in the campaign are in a wide range of industries, including but not limited to manufacturing, IT, finance, professional services, construction, healthcare, consumer goods, engineering, architecture, and design.
In the months ahead, BSA will launch public education efforts to ensure business leaders are aware of the risks of using unlicensed software. This will include marketing, communications, social media content and in some cases, direct appeals to businesses to ensure their software assets are fully licensed.
The Asia Pacific region has the highest rate of unlicensed software use in the world at 57 per cent.
Around the world, CIOs are finding unlicensed software is increasingly risky and expensive.
Organisations now face a one-in-three chance of encountering malware when they obtain or install an unlicensed software package or buy a computer with unlicensed software on it. Each malware attack can cost a company US$2.4 million on average and can take up to 50 days to resolve. To the extent that the infection leads to company downtime or lost business data, it can also seriously affect the company’s brand and reputation. The cost for dealing with malware that is associated with unlicensed software is growing too. It can now cost a company more than US$10,000 per infected computer and cost companies worldwide nearly US$359 billion a year.
BSA has long collaborated with governments to educate business leaders about the negative consequences of using unlicensed software. And this cooperation has brought positive results with annual reductions in the rate at which companies use unlicensed software. However, according to BSA, the problem continues to persist at unreasonable rates.
“The Asean region is among the most dynamic economic areas of the world, and both domestic and multinational companies are growing and benefiting from the many opportunities in Southeast Asia,” said Sawney. “But for companies in the Asean region to truly meet their ambitious goals, they must use safe, secure, licensed software. Unlicensed software is a liability that is no longer acceptable anywhere.”

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