MS' anti-piracy campaign gets stronger

NEW DELHI, INDIA: Microsoft Corporation has filed 52 lawsuits and the referral of 22 cases to local law enforcement in 22 countries against resellers who allegedly sold counterfeit Microsoft software at various online marketplaces

In India, the company has filed one lawsuit while referring a criminal case to law enforcement.

Microsoft has also released a new educational guide to help consumers spot and avoid counterfeit software offered on online marketplaces.

Fifteen of the 52 lawsuits filed involved software traced to the largest-ever commercial counterfeit syndicate, which was broken up earlier this year by Chinese authorities, the FBI and Microsoft.

“As part of our ongoing effort to combat software piracy, Microsoft is committed to taking the legal action necessary to protect consumers around the world from the dangers of counterfeit software, and we encourage consumers to look to the legitimate channel - both online and offline - when seeking original Microsoft software,” said David Finn, associate general counsel for Worldwide Anti-Piracy and Anti-Counterfeiting at Microsoft.