Exclusive Article by Lindsey Patterson at EMRIndustry
Research has revealed that close to 40% of software installed in devices around the world isn’t licensed. The figure is alarming considering how cyber attacks have recently become prevalent. Pirated software is now the easiest entry point for a hacker to infiltrate into a network or system. Worse, the cost of developing pirated software seems high for software developers dedicated to designing legitimate security solutions. Pirated software often contains malware and viruses that can easily damage the reputation of a developer as well as its revenue. With these tips for protecting software from potential hacks, never let pirates infiltrate into your software.
Maximize Your Contacts in the U.S.
One way to protect a system from potential hacks is to host some of its aspects in the United States. Alternatively, host its online manual in the United States and consider controlling numbers on DVD software, installing copy protection, or outsourcing a cloud access security broker (CASB) software to help your IT department monitor its cloud service usage. That will create an opportunity for you to pursue legal action against any attack from a foreign hacker using the U.S. jurisdiction.
Prioritize Your Efforts
Of course, not all hackers are the same, and some competing interests and resources can be more attractive to a pirate than others. Unlike everyone, focus on companies that seem to be gaining an unfair competitive advantage against their subscribers instead of educational organizations.
Beef-Up Your Software Licensing
Your software should have a click-through agreement that contains the terms of use. It should be mandatory for all software access avenues including trial versions. Also, remember to include a form with choice and selection of law clauses in your terms of use and a liquidated damages clause specifying the amount of money payable as damage in case either party breaches the contract. Remember to include a licensee’s recognition that shows that the U.S. copyright law protects your software and make sure that the agreement is a license and not a sales agreement.
Invest in Evidence Gathering Technology
It may be necessary to embed technology that allows the collection of forensic evidence in your software. The technology should also be able to supplement and cross-correlate the collected data with trial version requests, support requests, website account logins, download records for support documents and manuals, attendance programs, training programs, and website registration information. An advanced tamper detection system, for example, can tell that someone used your software illegally and provide details of exactly when that happened, who did it, for how long, how many times, and on which device. You can leverage this information for legal proceedings or bringing the offender under compliance.
Make Your Policing Efforts Timely
Limitations statutes may prevent someone from regaining their rights for unauthorized use if only a few years have passed since the occurrence of a piracy incident. It gets worse if someone knew of the event and never reported or took any action. Crying wolf can cost software users their money and credibility. Threats and letters with no follow-up won’t make any difference.
Prioritize Revenue over Pirated Copies
Of course, no one wants to protect their software just for fun, but for maximizing revenue as well. As such, instead of looking for the software that is hardest to crack, look for a licensing and software protection strategy that maximizes your revenue. Besides that, try to find the trade-off between copy protection and usability. Your software is easy to crack and result in a loss of a lot of revenue when you don’t have any copy protection. However, to maximize your income, try to make your software hard to crack, but it should be usable and navigable to drive away dishonest customers.
A successful entrepreneur has to take a stand against piracy to safeguard their future and reputation as well as protect their valued customers. That means everyone has to pursue their accusations against cyber attackers and infringers and arm their software with actionable information. With that, a software user will set a reputation that their software can’t be pirated and impact the global piracy epidemic.
