Colombia has the second-lowest rate of unlicensed software use in the region, at 52% but the commercial value reached $396 million in 2013, according to an international survey.
The use of unlicensed software has dropped 1% in Colombia from 2011 to 2013 and is now the second-lowest in South America, at 52%, according to a study from the Software Alliance (BSA). But BSA estimates that the commercial damage caused by the unlicensed software in 2013 was $396 million.
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The survey that BSA conducts every two years highlights the extent of the problem with illegal software on an international level. On a global level the illegal software downloaded every year corresponds to many billion dollars. Results from the survey are from 2013 where the global rate of unlicensed software use was 43%, an increase in 1% from 2011.
“Unlicensed software use is an organizational governance issue — and this study shows there is a clear need for improvement,” said CEO of BSA Victoria Espinel quoted in a BSA press release.
The region with the highest rate was in 2013 Asia-Pacific with 62% which is an increase of 2% from 2011. This high number reflects a commercial value of $21 billion. Although U.S. in comparison had the overall lowest rate when it came to download of unlicensed PC software, 19%, this still accounts for a large amount of money with nearly $10.9 billlion.
Central and Eastern Europe had the second-highest rate with 61% while the rate in Western Europe had dropped three points to 29% from 2011 to 2013.
According to the study conducted by more than 24,000 respondents, computer users around the world highlights the risk of security threats from malware as the top reason not to use unlicensed software i.e. intrusions by hackers and loss of data. Despite this, almost half of the respondents in the survey had unlicensed software installed on their computer.
“Most people don’t know what is installed on their systems. That needs to change,” Espinel said.