Software Piracy: A Big Crime With Big Consequences
Imaging for a moment that you come across an advertisement saying you can
meet up with an individual who will break into a store, disarm all of the alarms
and will hold the door open for you as you walk inside and take anything you
wish. This criminal offence occurs every day on computer systems around the
world including the internet. This is a very serious problem and is very
difficult to circumvent. Every computer user is both tempted and immersed in
software piracy in its many forms. One of the most disturbing facts behind this
crime is that many people who participate in the distribution of commercial
software don't even know they are committing a crime. Software piracy is a very
serious and widespread crime that must be acknowledged and dealt with.
Software piracy is the unauthorized duplication and or distribution of
copyrighted programs. There are two ways to be involved in software piracy.
The first is facilitation. Facilitation is the deliberate copying of copyrighted
software and distributing it. An example would be an MIT student named David
LaMacchia. This individual served and maintained a computer that was connected
to the internet that offered it's users more than one million dollars worth of
software 'free of charge.' Mr. LaMacchia was caught by the authorities and was
acquitted of this piracy due to the lack of legal standards for this crime.
Another example is off local bulletin board systems. Many are run out of the
offenders homes with just a phone line, a computer and a modem. Here members of
this service can send and receive pirated software (otherwise known as 'warez')
as their own pace and leisure. There are not just one or two of these bulletin
boards around there are in fact many. Most reside in large cities and the
offenders are in most cases minors. As the computer gains a more stable hold on
our society these bulletin boards are replaced by the ones that are... [continues]
Imaging for a moment that you come across an advertisement saying you can
meet up with an individual who will break into a store, disarm all of the alarms
and will hold the door open for you as you walk inside and take anything you
wish. This criminal offence occurs every day on computer systems around the
world including the internet. This is a very serious problem and is very
difficult to circumvent. Every computer user is both tempted and immersed in
software piracy in its many forms. One of the most disturbing facts behind this
crime is that many people who participate in the distribution of commercial
software don't even know they are committing a crime. Software piracy is a very
serious and widespread crime that must be acknowledged and dealt with.
Software piracy is the unauthorized duplication and or distribution of
copyrighted programs. There are two ways to be involved in software piracy.
The first is facilitation. Facilitation is the deliberate copying of copyrighted
software and distributing it. An example would be an MIT student named David
LaMacchia. This individual served and maintained a computer that was connected
to the internet that offered it's users more than one million dollars worth of
software 'free of charge.' Mr. LaMacchia was caught by the authorities and was
acquitted of this piracy due to the lack of legal standards for this crime.
Another example is off local bulletin board systems. Many are run out of the
offenders homes with just a phone line, a computer and a modem. Here members of
this service can send and receive pirated software (otherwise known as 'warez')
as their own pace and leisure. There are not just one or two of these bulletin
boards around there are in fact many. Most reside in large cities and the
offenders are in most cases minors. As the computer gains a more stable hold on
our society these bulletin boards are replaced by the ones that are... [continues]
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(1999, 10). Software Piracy: a Big Crime with Big Consequences. StudyMode.com. Retrieved 10, 1999, from http://www.studymode.com/essays/Software-Piracy-Big-Crimebig-Consequences-834.html
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"Software Piracy: a Big Crime with Big Consequences" StudyMode.com. 10 1999. 10 1999 <http://www.studymode.com/essays/Software-Piracy-Big-Crimebig-Consequences-834.html>.
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"Software Piracy: a Big Crime with Big Consequences." StudyMode.com. 10, 1999. Accessed 10, 1999. http://www.studymode.com/essays/Software-Piracy-Big-Crimebig-Consequences-834.html.
