Pirate software being eradicated from state sector

THE prevention of the use of unauthorised computer software in the government and semi-government sectors is an element of vital importance in the fight against software piracy, anti-piracy activists said yesterday.

The hardware and software systems used in government organisations form a substantial proportion (over 50 per cent) of all computers and computer software used on the island.
As a result, securing the operation of legal software in them inevitably means a dramatic drop in the use of pirate products. In the case of Cyprus, this is estimated to be around 50 per cent, according to last year’s statistics.

Achilleas Demetriades, Business Software Alliance (BSA) local counsel for Cyprus, says that both the government and semi-government sectors have already begun to show in practice their determination to contribute in the fight against piracy.

All departments involved in tenders are very demanding as to what they are purchasing and whether the software installed on their computers or other electronic systems are properly authorised.

As a next step, Achilleas proposes that the Auditor-general exercises the required control over both the government and semi-government sectors in order to achieve better results. The control should aim to ensure that all computers and computer software are properly licensed.
“When this authority is exercised by the Auditor-general’s office, it will immediately lead to the control of the wider public sector, thereby ensuring that legality will prevail to the fullest possible extent. When the state itself leads the way, it will be followed by the major companies and filter down to the other levels as well.”

One of BSA’s major aims for 2005 is the exercise of a software audit in the wider state sector. Once this target is achieved, it will inevitably mark the prevalence of legality and the success against software piracy in a major sector.

This will have positive effects on the remaining sectors of the private economy. It will actually set an example to be followed.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.