business software alliance audit

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bandmybroad

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Just got a notice from the BSA saying something to the effect that we are to be audited.

My company makes a point of trying to be legal so this has come as a shock to us.

How does the BSA find out about alleged pirated software? I assume it's mostly from tip offs?

I suspect this is could be due to a disgruntled employee. Does the BSA make any effort in filtering their tips?

Do they (BSA) have some kind of nice income stream from shaking down small companies?
 
If you are legit, then you have nothing to worry about. But do an audit yourself and remind employees not to have any pirated material including movies and tv shows
 
I am annoyed because I will have to find time to check 50+ machines, some of which we bought at auction which already had software installed on them.
 
bandmybroad said:
I am annoyed because I will have to find time to check 50+ machines, some of which we bought at auction which already had software installed on them.
Click to expand...

Unless it came with the software and proof there of, then it ain't licensed.
 
I want to know how the BSA finds out about alleged piracy? Is it anonymous tip offs?
 
Well the last audit we had was from our supplier about a year ago. We also buy refurbished machines and those machines come with an official Windows disk and licence, however several of those machines have failed and windows had to be reinstalled
and the tech forgot to activate them before they were deployed again. A message shows saying something to the effect that this is an invalid copy but can still be used. I think some employee saw this message and called the BSA. I wonder if this is a valid theory.

Should I concentrate my audit on Windows licences?
 
bandmybroad said:
Just got a notice from the BSA saying something to the effect that we are to be audited.

My company makes a point of trying to be legal so this has come as a shock to us.

How does the BSA find out about alleged pirated software? I assume it's mostly from tip offs?

I suspect this is could be due to a disgruntled employee. Does the BSA make any effort in filtering their tips?

Do they (BSA) have some kind of nice income stream from shaking down small companies?
Click to expand...

Did you experience the departure of a disgruntled employee recently?
 
Sonic2k said:
Did you experience the departure of a disgruntled employee recently?
Click to expand...

I don't know who has been laid of, it's not my dept.

I am just wanting to know if the anonymous tips are their primary way of finding prospective targets.
 
All BSA audits are based on tip-offs, usually from employees or suppliers, often both. Great care is taken to check out the tipster, the motives, and the target organisation before an audit request is issued. The BSA is well aware that disgruntled employees might not have the most salutary motives.

There is often a chain of connections to follow, leading to various organisations that might be using unlicensed software. One dealer might lose a sale because a competitor is able to undercut by preloading unlicensed software. They report it to the BSA, which launches an investigation using both private and SAPS detectives. That in turn leads to the end-user who has unlicensed software. You get the idea.

A BSA audit notice is the 'gentle' way. If you're uncooperative or stall, you could find yourself facing a raid by SAPS armed with an Anton Piller order.
 
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Do they have any legal power to enforce audits?

SABC also has a habit of sending out letters with ludicrous demands (last one I saw they wanted the company's (financial) auditor to go count how many TVs the company has for the SABC). Company sent back a letter saying sure thing...if the SABC pays the auditor's fee. That shut them up. :D
 
Arthur said:
All BSA audits are based on tip-offs, usually from employees or suppliers, often both. Great care is taken to check out the tipster, the motives, and the target organisation before an audit request is issued. The BSA is well aware that disgruntled employees might not have the most salutary motives.

A BSA audit notice is the 'gentle' way. If you're uncooperative or stall, you could find yourself facing a raid by SAPS armed with an Anton Piller order.
Click to expand...

Well we are planning to cooperate as best as possible. We have done nothing knowingly wrong. I am just pissed off because doing this audit is going to take a lot of my time that could be better spent elsewhere.
 
HavocXphere said:
Do they have any legal power to enforce audits?
Click to expand...
No. An audit request is sent.

If the 'target' refuses and the grounds are good, an Anton Piller order is obtained from a judge, and the premises are raided by the SAPS and BSA officials. All work ceases as each machine is checked by the police.

The last Anton Piller raid I was involved in was at household-name company HQ. Unforgettable. That was after the dealer who supplied the machines with unlicensed software had made a "full disclosure", which turned out to be severely understated. Two audit requests were declined by the 'target'. The only recourse then was to a judge. A satisfactory settlement was reached that same day all worked stopped at the company HQ.
 
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