Most Pakistanis have used software they haven’t paid for, oblivious to the fact that malware and unlicensed software go hand in hand.
BSA software alliance conducted a global software survey in 2015 where they found a positive relation between malware and the usage of unlicensed software within business organizations.
An analysis done as part of BSA’s new Global Software Survey finds that the higher the rate of unlicensed PC software, the higher the likelihood that users will experience potentially debilitating malware.
The survey report mostly focused on malware threats and their prevention within business organizations, and how they can decrease their losses and increase their efficiency by using a software asset management (SAM) technique.
They estimate that on average, a cyberattack on an organization costs around $11 million, while the reputed research firm IDC estimates that the businesses spent $400 billion for responding to the fallout from cyberattacks.
Globally the rate of usage of unlicensed software fell in 2015 with trends emerging in different regions. In China, the rate decreased by 4 percent but the overall rate in the Asia-Pacific region decreased by only 1 percent. Here is where Pakistan stood compared with other countries in the region.
Compared with India, we use a lot more unlicensed software on average. At 84%, the rate for Pakistan is now the same as it was back in 2009 while India has seen its unlicensed software use rate drop from 65% in 2009 to 58% in 2015. Bangladesh is statistically close to Pakistan with 86% in 2015, down from 91% in 2009.
Piracy is a serious concern in the business world, as mentioned in the statistics earlier. A possible solution for them would be a 4 step SAM technique implementation as described in the BSA report. The government itself in Pakistan uses pirated software, an alarming situation for us.
The government should start by taking care of this problem internally first, and then creating awareness among the people about piracy, its dangers and its problems. In an increasingly digital world, saving on licensing costs is nothing compared to the fallout of a serious security breach.
via BSA