PCs with pirated software infected after installation, Microsoft study says!

By: J. M. Tuazon, InterAksyon.com ·


MANILA, Philippines – In a bid to curb software piracy around the world, software giant Microsoft recently released a study indicating that 24 percent of PCs that run pirated software get infected immediately after installation, among other similar effects.

In a research done by Harrison Group and compiled by Microsoft, it was discovered that one in five of counterfeit Microsoft PCs tested by the company were unable to download Windows updates.

Software updates from Windows are critical since they patch recently known vulnerabilities that are being exploited by people behind the creation of malware.
Since these PCs with counterfeit Windows copies are unable to download updates, they are left vulnerable against the effects of viruses and other malware.
The study found that the effects are observable across the board. “The inability to download automatic updates was found both in software that had been downloaded for free and in software that had been purchased from a street market or hardware retailer,” it pointed out.
Performance-wise, the study noted that machines with genuine OSes boot faster 60 percent of the time, load files and documents faster 75 percent of the time, and generally demonstrate superior performance rates 67 percent of the time.
Moreover, battery life is 60 percent longer for machines with genuine copies of Windows installed on them, it added.
The results of the study come on the heels of Microsoft’s efforts to eliminate pirated copies of its software — arguably its bread and butter — from the market, in an initiative it has dubbed as “Play Fair Day.”
In a separate study, Microsoft revealed that manufacturing companies in Brazil, Russia, India and China — more commonly known as the BRIC region — that use pirated software are essentially stealing $1.5 billion from their competitors.
“Unfairness from piracy creates a staggering $3 billion of competitive disadvantage per year across manufacturers in Latin America, Central and Eastern Europe and Asia-Pacific regions,” it added.
On a closer note, the Business Software Alliance — an international advocacy group which seeks to halt the spread of illegal software worldwide — recently reported that the local software industry lost as much as P12 billion to piracy in 2010.
“Although we have seen increased efforts by the Philippine government and the Information Technology (IT) industry in protecting software copyright, we continue to face huge challenges in trying to drive piracy rates down,” said BSA Philippine Consultant Atty. Bien Marquez.
For the past four years, the piracy rate had remained unmoved at 69 percent. The group had also earlier noted that Microsoft’s products — particularly its operating system Windows — is one of the most pirated pieces of software in the Philippines.