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Extension kicks off National Cyber Security Awareness Month
The Business Software Alliance (BSA) today, officially kicked off National Cyber Security Awareness Month by announcing an extension of its $1 million rewards incentive program. BSA originally increased the reward from $200,000 to $1 million in July to run through the end of September. However, the success of the program has led BSA to extend the $1 million reward. “Blow the Whistle,” a national advertising campaign that encourages employees to report software piracy, will also continue through the remainder of the year.
“There has been a significant increase in software piracy reports in the last few months. We hope that the extension of the rewards program sustains this momentum,” said Jenny Blank, Senior Director of Legal Affairs for BSA. “The Blow the Whistle campaign will help intensify anti-piracy efforts by BSA by raising awareness about this problem and helping educate businesses about the importance of proper software management.”
As part of National Cyber Security Awareness Month, a national campaign designed by government agencies and private industry sponsors to increase the public's awareness of cyber security and cyber crime issues, BSA has also released a video to inform college students about the risks and consequences associated with unlicensed software use and participating in illegal downloading activities. The video can be seen at www.B4UCopy.com/video.html.
BSA will also continue to reach out to businesses and individuals to educate them about the risks of unlicensed software and how to ensure they are only using fully licensed software. A risk awareness guide and “10 Simple Steps,” a simple check list to help businesses protect themselves against the risks of illegal software, will be introduced this month. They will be available for free download in the Tools and Resources section on BSA’s website, www.bsa.org.
The BSA Rewards program was launched in the U.S. in the fall of 2005. The program encourages individuals with detailed information about software piracy to come forward and confidentially submit a report. Since the 2005 launch of the Rewards program, BSA has successfully settled with hundreds of companies resulting in approximately $22 million of damages paid since that time.
Individuals can learn more about the BSA Rewards program and how to submit a confidential report by visiting www.nopiracy.com or calling 1-888 NO PIRACY. Reward payments are subject to eligibility requirements, the details of which are available on the BSA website. Businesses trying to determine whether their organization is using unlicensed software can download the free software audit tools also available at www.bsa.org.
A recent study showed that twenty-one percent of software installed in 2006 on personal computers (PCs) nationally was obtained illegally, amounting to $7.3 billion losses due to software piracy.*
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The Business Software Alliance (www.bsa.org) is the foremost organization dedicated to promoting a safe and legal digital world. BSA is the voice of the world's commercial software industry and its hardware partners before governments and in the international marketplace. Its members represent one of the fastest growing industries in the world. BSA programs foster technology innovation through education and policy initiatives that promote copyright protection, cyber security, trade and e-commerce. BSA members include Adobe, Apple, Autodesk, Avid, Bentley Systems, Borland, CNC Software/Mastercam, McAfee, Microsoft, Mindjet, PTC, SolidWorks, Sybase, Symantec, The MathWorks and UGS.
Janice Laurente(202) 715-1540Janice.Laurente@dittus.com
United States
