The volume of unlicensed software used in Viet Nam has fallen by three percentage points to 78 per cent compared with 2013. — Illustrative Image/ Photo bnews.vn

Viet Nam News HCM CITY — The volume of unlicensed software used in Việt Nam has fallen by three percentage points to 78 per cent compared with 2013, according to the latest global software survey released by the Software Alliance (BSA).

In the survey, “Seizing Opportunity Through License Compliance”, BSA explained that the rate had been influenced by important trends underway in Việt Nam.

The overall market for PCs has dropped, especially for consumers, but the installed base has gone up, putting upward pressure on the unlicensed rate.

This was countered by increased software copyright enforcement and the Government’s national awareness programme.

BSA, however, warned that computer users in Việt Nam were still using unlicensed software at an alarming rate, despite the link between unlicensed software and cyberattacks.

“As the report underscores, it is critically important for a company to be aware of what software is on the company network,” said BSA President and CEO Victoria A. Espinel.

“Many CIOs don’t know the full extent of software deployed on their systems or if that software is legitimate.”

The survey, which canvassed consumers, IT managers and enterprise PC users, said that use of unlicensed software was still high, and that individuals and companies were playing with fire by using unlicensed software.

This was due to the strong connection between cyberattacks and the use of unlicensed software.

Where unlicensed software is in use, the likelihood of encountering malware dramatically goes up. And the cost of dealing with malware incidents can be staggering, BSA said.

In the survey, BSA also reported that 39 per cent of software installed on computers around the world in 2015 was not properly licensed, representing only a modest decrease from 43 per cent in BSA’s previous global study in 2013.

Even in certain critical industries, unlicensed use was surprisingly high. The survey found the worldwide rate was 25 per cent for the banking, insurance and securities industries.

According to the survey, the region with the highest overall rate of unlicensed software was the Asia-Pacific at 61 per cent, a one-point decline compared with BSA’s previous survey in 2013.

The next-highest unlicensed software rate was in Central and Eastern Europe with 58 per cent (falling three points from the rate registered in 2013), and then the Middle East-Africa at 57 per cent (dropping two points since 2013). — VNS