Computer Piracy And Privacy In The Internet

AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF COMPUTER PIRACY IN SRI LANKA SPECIAL REFERENCE TO PRIVATE AND THE PUBLIC SECTOR IN

SRI LANKA

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

“It is piracy, not overt online music stores which is our main competitor.”

Steve jobs

1. Computers and Software have become essential tools in our public, private, businesses, schools, factories, banks and personal lives. At the beginning computer companies offered the total system comprising hardware, software and training thus restricting the compatibility of software to their own machines. However this situation changed drastically in 1970s and leading to unbundling of hardware and software leading the manufacture of cheaper computers and the emergence of independent software development.

2. Further

Computer piracy also called as software piracy is defined as the unauthorized copying of distribution of copying software. This can be done by copying, downloading, sharing, selling or installing multiple copies onto personal or work computers. When a consumer purchases software they are actually purchasing a license to use it, not the actual software. The license condition stipulates how many times the purchaser can install the software. It more copies of the software than license permits are used, it amounts to piracy and hence, breaking of the law. Whether the consumer is casually marking a few copies for friends, loaning Compact Discs (CD), downloading or distributing pirated software from the on internet, or buying a single software program and then installing it on multiple computers, the consumer is committing copyright violation and therefore it called software piracy. Another type of piracy is when licensed software is illegally obtained through internet channels using peer to peer file sharing or downloads from pirate websites that offer free software. Pirated products often fail to function properly or worse are capable of infecting the users’ personnel software with malware that has the potential to cause serious

This research not only looks in to the relationship between willingness and attitude on software piracy , but also to identify to how to avoid risk of exposing as a country that has a higher rate of software piracy in the world. The current study focuses on software piracy in Sri Lanka special reference to the private and public sector, with regards to its usage over the internet, sharing software as physical media such as Compact Disc Read Only Memories (CD ROM) and buying pirate software from local market for the usage.

18. It is obvious that the software piracy rate of Sri Lanka is high. Many reasons can be indentified for the high rate. The research question for this study is to find whether software piracy in private and public sector will effect on is a result of willingness to invest and attitude to use original software and how to avoid risk of it as a developing country.