If caught with pirated software, you or your company may be tried under both civil and criminal law. Your Responsibilities Your first responsibility as a software user is to purchase original programs only for your use. If you purchase software for business use, every computer at your place of business must have its own set of original software to load onto more than one computer or to lend, copy or distribute software for any reason without the prior written consent of the software manufacturer. When purchasing software, make sure you buy only legitimate products. Many counterfeit packaged products are designed to look identical to original manufacturer products, but are inferior in quality.
Software publishers continue to work hard to make new products difficult to counterfeit.
Reprinted as a public service from the Business Software Alliance.