If those who betray their companies do it for moral reasons, they shouldn't take the money. But since they took the money, they do it for money, not for moral reasons. How moral can they be, if they do their own companies in, the very own company that feeds them. The colleagues may also be affected.
Snitch on companies using pirated software: Reward $20,000
Anti-piracy body encourages more to expose their firms
By Tham Yuen-C
SNITCHING on companies' illegal use of software can now get you $20,000 from the Business Software Alliance (BSA), twice as much as when the reward was first announced a few years ago.
The anti-piracy organisation is offering the reward specifically for tip-offs about the use of unlicensed software and illegal sharing of software programs in the workplace.
According to the BSA's director of anti-piracy in Asia, Mr Tarun Sawney, unlicensed software and program sharing are the most common forms of piracy and can be more damaging than counterfeiting.
A global study commissioned by the BSA estimated Singapore's software piracy rate at 43 per cent, translating into losses of up to $148 million a year.
Commercial software companies such as Adobe, Autodesk and Microsoft said a 10-point drop in Singapore's piracy rate could add $2.1 billion to the economy and create 1,800 jobs.
Last year, the BSA received an average of five to 20 tip-offs a week by phone and via its website. None of its investigations resulted in lawsuits, however, as they were settled out of court.
In 2001, one whistleblower was rewarded with $20,000 - double the amount on offer then because of the magnitude of the infringement - for exposing a company that was sharing unlicensed software on up to 100 computers. The company eventually settled with the BSA out of court.
According to Mr Sawney, the BSA has paid out rewards 'fairly regularly', although he declined to say how much was given out or how many whistleblowers were rewarded.
With the amended Copyright Act taking effect on Jan 1, Mr Sawney said the BSA will sieve through the leads it receives and pass 'clear and serious violations of the law' to the police to investigate and prosecute.
Under the new Act, it is a criminal offence for companies to use unlicensed or pirated software. Directors and IT managers of errant companies will be liable for fines of up to $20,000 and jail terms of up to six months for first-time offences.
The BSA has been criticised in the past for offering rewards to 'squealing' employees - a measure some consider ethically questionable.
'I've had friends who say it's tempting, but personally I feel it's too evil,' said one sales and marketing executive in the IT industry.
However, Mr Sawney said the BSA's focus is on educating companies and the hotline and reward are part of its efforts to reinforce the anti-piracy message.
He said he believes most Singapore businesses are law-abiding, but the increased efforts are necessary to weed out the minority who flout the law.
As part of ongoing educational efforts, the BSA has worked with the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore and the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises to conduct seminars to educate companies about managing software assets.
The BSA's anti-piracy hotline is 1800-333-3999.
Pragmatism aka being double faced is going to be our downfall.