Tag: Software piracy

ABES signs partnership with Boa Vista Serviços, SCPC administrator

In order to make entrepreneurs aware of the importance of using original software in their companies, the Legal Entrepreneur initiative, promoted by ABES (Brazilian Association of Software Companies) with support from ETCO, signed a partnership with Boa Vista Serviços, administrator of the SCPC.

Having ethical conduct as one of its main corporate values, Boa Vista SCPC believes that the correct management of software licenses is a way of promoting prosperity for all and, consequently, contributing to the country's progress.

The use and / or acquisition of software without the corresponding use licenses, or even in disagreement with the applicable use license agreement, can have legal implications (criminal and civil) related to piracy, unfair competition and tax evasion.

To ensure compliance with the law and a better future for the country, ABES and Boa Vista recommend effective management of software licenses in use by companies.

For more information visit www.empreendedorlegal.org.br - the portal provides, free of charge, an online Software Asset Management Manual.

Do you believe you were a victim of piracy? Do you suspect or know of any case?
Click here and report

Collaboration: Microsoft
Source: ABES Portal

 

ABES launches Software Asset Management Manual

Like any other valuable resource within a company, software is an asset that needs effective management to avoid waste of investments or even future expenses. To guide IT Executives and other managers, the Brazilian Association of Software Companies (ABES) has just launched the ABES Software Asset Management Manual.

Available for free on the entity's website, the interactive manual shows how a company can maintain compliance with licensing policies, current legislation and also the most common mistakes made by companies.

Using a counterfeit copy of a computer program or improperly using an unauthorized license are some of the practices that configure software piracy.

Therefore, it is essential that companies make a control of the acquired assets to check if the licenses are being used correctly and not to suffer civil and legal penalties. This is because, software piracy and IT theft are crimes and the organization will be exposed to compensation, which can reach up to three thousand times the value of the counterfeit software program, and to prison sentences, which can last for four years.

“Our goal is to alert and help companies to implement a procedural methodology that follows the best practices in the market, helping companies to improve processes and make conscious investments”, comments Jorge Sukarie, president of ABES.

Source: ABES Portal
Collaboration: Microsoft

Click here and read the full article

 

Video contest educates students about piracy

Finished with an exciting award ceremony, held on the 8th, the 5th edition of the Video Legal Contest was attended by 520 students from the cities of São Paulo (SP) and Brasília (DF). The initiative, which is sponsored by the Brazilian Institute of Ethics in Competition - ETCO, aims to educate elementary school students about the damage caused by piracy.

In the city of São Paulo, 120 students from the municipal network gathered in groups to create videos on the topic. In the Federal Capital, the number of applicants was surprising: 400 pre-adolescent students from the Inter-school Language Centers (Cils), a complementary education network in Brasília, participated in the contest.

In São Paulo, of the ten piracy videos produced by students and selected for the final stage, six were awarded. The trophies and prizes were delivered at Amcham's headquarters, the American Chamber of Commerce, in the south of the city. Teachers, pedagogical coordinators, students and representatives of sponsoring institutions were present.

For Heloisa Ribeiro, executive director of ETCO, the messages that the students transmitted with the content of the videos were important for the personal training of each one. They also serve as an example to family and friends, encouraging the fight against piracy and increasing awareness of the problem.

The consul general of the United States in São Paulo, Dennis Hankins, stressed that the objective of the contest was to show students that producing an intellectual work requires effort, and that authors have the right to be rewarded for their work.

In addition to ETCO, the initiative was sponsored by the United States Consulate General, Eli Lilly, Microsoft, HP, Walt Disney Company, Sport Club Corinthians Paulista and the São Paulo Municipal Department of Education.

The winning students in each category won the right to visit the Microsoft Technology Center in São Paulo, along with the winners of the Brasília stage. In Capital Federal, the winning work was Beware, pirate glasses, from Cil 1. In São Paulo, the six winning works were:

Category 1 (10 to 12 years)

1. Municipal Elementary School (EMEF) Professor Máximo de Moura - Piracy? Copyright? What is it?

2. EMEF Doctor José Dias da Silveira - Jornal Zé Dias

3. EMEF Professor Primo Páscole Melaré - Nature asks for passage

Category 2 (12 to 14 years)

1. EMEF Professor Sylvia Martin Pires - A Pirated Addiction

2. EMEF May 8 - The old piracy

3. EMEF Zilka Salaberry de Carvalho - Zilka news on modern piracy

Source: Amcham of Brazil

Unpublished campaign warns of the dangers of smuggling

The cheapest is not always the best choice. Even more when the option is for smuggled, pirated or counterfeit products.

The Brazilian Association to Combat Counterfeiting (ABCF), in partnership with the Brazilian Institute of Ethics in Competition (ETCO), launched this Wednesday, July 23, the campaign "Promotion Achou, Perdeu!"

The campaign's proposal is to draw the attention of consumers and society to the risks that products from contraband bring to safety and health. The tone of the communication follows the line of the great sales of popular stores, but with a focus on unknown components and the dangers generated by pirated software, illegal cigarettes from Paraguay and toys without Inmetro certification.

“We want to involve society and encourage a change in consumer behavior, showing that often what appears to be an advantage, in fact, only brings problems and harms to health and increased crime in the state”, explains Rodolpho Ramazzini, director of the Association Brazilian Fight Against Counterfeiting (ABCF).

"As well as the health and safety risks were not enough, the increase in smuggling also significantly affects the state's revenue", concludes Ramazzini.

Research

Aimed at classes B and C, which are among the largest consumers of smuggled, pirated or counterfeit products, the campaign “Promotion Found, Lost!” was based on various statistics and research by Ibope, which helped to identify the points that hurt and sensitize the consumer the most.

Campaign reach

The campaign will run in the metropolitan region of Curitiba between the months of July and October and will be on several billboards, bus shelters, on TV channels, radio and newspapers.

After this period, the entities will analyze the results - such as the drop in the consumption of smuggled and counterfeit products - to evaluate the possibility of expanding the circulation to other states and cities affected by this problem.

ABES eliminates 11 illegal software download links

Entity also celebrates the first anniversary of the Legal Entrepreneur project, an initiative that encourages the use of licensed programs

ABES, an association of software companies, removed 11.557 illegal download links for computer programs in the first three months of the year. Of that total, 4.037 were removed specifically from auction sites, an increase of 12,6% compared to the number of such links blocked in the first three months of last year.

Recently, ABES monitoring has gained support from the Free Market Intellectual Property Protection Program (PPI). Through the program, the removal of illegal software offers on the site is now done within 24 hours.

Also according to the entity, another 7.509 illegal links were disabled in the first quarter of the year. The amount is 3,1% lower when compared to the number of blockades of the type made in the first quarter of 2013. The entity claims to have taken down 11 websites for downloading illegal programs. Last year, the association removed 15 Internet addresses.

For ten years, ABES has monitored the internet for links to download copyrighted software belonging to its members. Both the website hosting the links and their ISPs are notified to remove the content. If pirated programs remain available, they are then prosecuted, based on current legislation.

Legal Entrepreneur

The ABES initiative “Empreendedor Legal”, which encourages the use of licensed software in the corporate environment, completed a year on April 26, World Intellectual Property Day. In a year of activities, the program held 12 awareness events and information campaigns on the use of legal software in the cities of Salvador (BA), Rio de Janeiro (RJ), São Paulo (SP), Barueri (SP) and Jaraguá do Sul (SC).

In addition to events and campaigns, ABES celebrates 23 thousand accesses to the portal Legal Entrepreneur Channel created especially for the initiative. The site has content about the importance of using legal software and the consequences of using pirated products. Also according to the organization, 34 thousand reports of outbreaks of piracy were brought to justice through the website Anonymous Reporting Against Software Piracy, which has an access link from Legal Entrepreneur Channel.

The ABES initiative is supported by Apex-Brasil; Brazilian Association of Intellectual Property (ABPI); BSA - The Software Alliance; National Conference on Trade in Goods, Services and Tourism (CNC); National Council to Combat Piracy (CNCP); Brazilian Institute of Competitive Ethics (ETCO); Competitive Brazil Movement (MBC) and the Brazilian Small and Micro Enterprise Support Service (Sebrae).

With information from the press office of ABES

Abes announces mobile application against software piracy

Available on Android, IOS and Windows Phone platforms, the app is free and was developed to facilitate the sending of anonymous reports about software piracy

The Brazilian Association of Software Companies (Abes) and BSA - The Software Alliance launched the “Denounce Piracy” application to receive anonymous reports about corporate software piracy. The download is free and compatible with Android, IOS and Windows Phone platforms.

"The app was created to facilitate the registration of these complaints already made through the website www.denunciepirataria.org.br, which in 2013 registered 31 thousand complaints involving commercialization, acquisition or use of illegal programs", says Jorge Sukarie, president of Abes .

In Brazil, the current software piracy rate is considered alarming. For every ten programs acquired or downloaded over the internet in national territory, more than five are obtained illegally. According to a BSA study, if the piracy rate decreases 10 percentage points (from the current 53% to 43%), R $ 6,4 billion would be added to the local economy, 13 new jobs would be created and the industry's revenue would increase by more of R $ 4,8 billion.

“Disrespect for intellectual property weakens economic growth and the development of jobs and new technologies. In addition, companies that use illegal software operate with an unfair advantage over the competition. We hope that, with the help of the application, the number of complaints against software piracy will triple in the coming months, due to the mobility and simplicity of the app ”, evaluates Sukarie.

Links to download the application:

• https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=br.org.denunciepirataria
• https://itunes.apple.com/pt/app/denounce-pirataria/id746224884?mt=8
• http://www.windowsphone.com/pt-br/store/app/denuncie-pirataria/f414842a-3016-46d5-a1c7-86b34a68ef1a

Anonymous Software Piracy Reporting Portal had 31 nominations in 2013

Abes and BSA's initiative led to the inspection of 12 thousand companies, and the majority opted for regularization. South and Southeast regions lead ranking of complaints

Launched in November 2012 by the Brazilian Association of Software Companies (Abes) in partnership with BSA - The Software Alliance, the Software Piracy Reporting Portal (www.denunciepirataria.org.br) ended 2013 with the mark of 31 thousand indications of cases of commercialization, acquisition or use of illegal programs. As a result, 12 thousand companies were inspected and the majority opted for the regularization of the software.

The channel is one of several actions taken by entities to combat software piracy in the country. The complaints are 100% anonymous and can be made by any citizen who finds irregularities in the use, sale or distribution of software by physical stores, online and companies.

Of the total of 31 thousand complaints, more than 20 thousand are unique, considering that a company can be nominated several times. In other words, 60% of the companies (12 thousand) have already been inspected and encouraged to regularize their situation. Complaints are forwarded to manufacturers, and each case is verified in accordance with the companies' internal processes. Currently, the portal has 11 manufacturers registered in the program: Adobe, Audaces, Autodesk, Dassault, Microsoft, Progress, PLM, Siemens, Sybase, Symantec and Tekla.

The companies denounced are mainly located in the Southeast and South regions, with 31% and 8,64%, respectively. Followed by the Northeast (1,92%), Midwest (1,44%) and North (0,41%).

Piracy industry

The Whistleblower Portal also contributed to the seizure of 487.852 pirated software CDs and DVDs in 2013. The South region had the highest record of seizures (1905), and 129 computer resellers were assessed by the police in the South and Southeast with suspicions of commercialize counterfeit computer programs. In total, police agents, with Abes logistical support, managed to seize approximately 3 pirated items in these resellers, including software and serials for activating computer programs.

Abes President Jorge Sukarie is satisfied with the results achieved. "The numbers exceeded our expectations and it is gratifying to see how society has contributed to the complaints and how the software manufacturers are committed to fighting the sale of illegal programs," says Sukarie. “Failure to respect intellectual property rights weakens the principle of legality for economic growth, as well as the development of innovative technologies. It creates an unfair market, in which honest companies are not able to compete. ”

All necessary information and step by step to make an anonymous report are available on the portal website: www.denuniepirataria.com.br

Source: Abes Press Office
S2 Publicom - Phone. (11) 3027 0200

Legal Software brings competitive advantage and productivity

Jorge Sukarie (Abes)
By Jorge Sukarie, President of the Brazilian Association of Software Companies (ABES)

The national software industry has enormous potential to develop innovative solutions, although it still needs incentives, both for research and development and to dampen the flow of piracy that slows the growth of the sector and prevents Brazil from becoming more competitive.

The rampant performance of the counterfeiting trade led the National Council to Combat Piracy (CNPC), an organ linked to the Ministry of Justice, to elect the need to have a dimension of this impact in Brazil, with more exact figures referring to crime, as the main action for the new Plan to Combat Piracy, announced on May 15th. To this end, several activities were suggested to be carried out by 2016, based on three main areas of activity: educational, economic and inspection. The objective is to obtain a more accurate radiography of piracy in the country.

Aware of its role and the importance of supporting the government, the Brazilian Association of Software Companies (ABES) launched, this year, the Legal Entrepreneur Campaign - http://www.empreendedorlegal.org.br, with the objective of raising awareness among Brazilian businesspeople from all sectors about the delay and the damage they can cause to their segment of activity and to the Brazilian economy, by making use of counterfeit copies of computer programs in their company. The campaign points out the legal and technical risks, in addition to highlighting the benefits of betting on legal software.

As well as this campaign, there are also other initiatives in Brazil, such as the Cidade Livre da Pirataria program. Created by the CNCP and managed by the Brazilian Institute of Ethics in Competition (ETCO), this action aims to be able to integrate the inspection and enforcement agencies to act in the municipal sphere. In the city of São Paulo alone, the program has already disclosed the seizure of more than R $ 2 billion of counterfeit products between the months of December 2010 and October 2012.

The Anonymous Complaints Against Pirate Software portal http://www.denunciepirataria.org.br/, created by ABES and BSA I The Software Alliance, is also part of these national initiatives against the crime of piracy, which has specific punishments in the country This year alone, this communication channel received more than 2.500 complaints and contributed, in March, to the seizure of 550 illegal media, carried out by local authorities in 25 computer resellers suspected of practicing irregular commerce.

However, in order to reduce the current 53% of software piracy in the country, all this great undertaking by the government and by the entities that defend the Brazilian software industry needs, a lot, the awareness of companies and users. There is no advantage in buying a counterfeit product, a crime that steals jobs in the country, reduces tax collection, which would be used to benefit society, and also encourages organized crime.

For those who still believe they are doing a good business competing in the market with illegal software licenses, a study carried out in 95 countries, recently released by the BSA I The Software Alliance, concluded that legal software brings greater economic stimulus than pirated software. The increase of just 1% in the use of legal software worldwide would bring a global return of US $ 73 billion. In contrast, with the same growth, the use of pirated software would add less than a third to the global economy, or about $ 20 billion.

This year, IDC also issued a warning to companies that still believe it is convenient to compete in the market illegally and have not provided an audit of their technology park to check which licenses are active on their machines.

The research institute revealed that the chances of infection by unexpected malware reach one in three consumers and three in ten companies. As a result, consumers will spend 1,5 billion hours and $ 22 billion to identify, repair and recover their equipment from the impact of malicious code. Transnational companies must spend $ 114 billion to deal with the impact of a cyber attack, when they could invest in development, innovation and new jobs.

The new Plan to Combat Piracy also foresees investments in innovation and entrepreneurship, fundamental areas for suppliers to develop new offers, with the same quality and more competitive prices in relation to the pirate market.

All these efforts with actions of repression, market research and awareness campaigns aim to inform that the bet on legal software is not only the acquisition of an original product. It is an investment in the professional who works in the market, in the evolution of technology, in the employment generated from research and development in new software. In this way, the whole society benefits, making the economy more heated and the country more competitive.