Andre Yoskowitz
1 Dec 2009 12:25
The Business Software Alliance (BSA) has announced that they have now doubled the reward for workers who whistleblow on their bosses for using pirated software.
The reward is now £20,000.
The move comes amidst new research that showed that about 70 percent of all workers in London would turn on their bosses for "dodgy business practices" while 20 percent of those said they would be even more willing to do so during the holiday season so they could have more spending money for their families. That number increased to 40 percent if the workers felt their job was in jeopardy in the near future.
“Many cash-strapped employees are willing to supplement their earnings in the run up to Christmas by reporting illegal business practices, and the affects of the recession are making them even more likely to expose corporate wrongdoings,” added Alyna Cope, BSA UK Committee spokesperson, via CBR “London businesses should take note and make every effort to ensure that their software licensing is up-to-date.”
In another "where did you pull these figures from" type note, Cope says that London businesses alone use £179 million worth of pirated software each year and that a "10% drop in piracy rates would generate over 13,000 new jobs, £1.08bn in tax revenues and contribute £4.46bn to the UK’s economy."