SMEs are worst software pirates

When it comes to software piracy, it's the little guys you have to keep your eye on - the Business Software Alliance (BSA) has announced today that the vast majority of companies caught out for knock-off software are falling into the SME category.

The figures out today show that nine out of ten of the companies who settled with the BSA in 2002/2003 were small or medium-sized companies, with Adobe, Microsoft and Symantec being among the pirates' software of choice.

So why are SMEs the most prolific counterfeit software users? The BSA puts the trend down to a lack of awareness – and a lack of cash. Smaller companies tend to lack the same rigorous auditing policies of their bigger counterparts and, with software freely available online, can lose track of who has what installed on their machine, while the days of tightly squeezed budgets can lead to managers getting selective blindness when it comes to the odd knock-off of Windows.

Mark Floisand, Chairman of BSA, said in a statement: "SMEs often come unstuck in managing their software assets. The pressure involved in setting up a business and maintaining growth often pushes software licensing down the list of priorities. Unfortunately it is only when businesses get caught that people listen up and address the problem of software piracy within their own organisation."

The BSA's research shows that around 26 per cent of all business software use is illegal – and the figure is up for the first time in seven years.