Software Piracy Protection and Anti-Piracy Solutions

Software piracy occurs when people copy, sell, share or distribute software illegally. It could be a limited case of someone installing single-user license software on multiple computers, or a much more chronic problem of widespread distribution by peer-to-peer networks or "warez" sites. Regardless of the rationale or delivery method it is still software piracy. The safeguard of SafeNet's anti-piracy technology can dramatically reduce the risk of huge losses of time, investment and revenue.

Software piracy continues to be a growing epidemic. According to the Second Annual Business Software Alliance (BSA) and IDC Global Software Piracy Study, thirty-five percent of the software installed on personal computers worldwide was pirated, representing a loss of nearly $33 billion in 2004.

SafeNet's comprehensive anti-piracy software technology can significantly reduce the risk of revenue lost due to piracy, and therefore create a positive return on investment. To calculate your projected revenue lost due to software piracy, please use our Sentinel ROI Calculator.

Software Piracy Protection Considerations

When considering what type of piracy protection to incorporate, cost and overall strength of the security are important elements to analyze. SafeNet offers software protection and licensing with varying degrees of security and transparency. For more information about selecting and implementing anti-piracy technology, see, Best Practices for Selecting and Implementing Software License Management. Or view these PDF white papers from our document library for additional resources.

Total development time required to implement your anti-piracy solutions is also a significant factor to consider. Anti-piracy technology is frequently implemented at the end of the development cycle, when time to market is limited and the development cycle must be finalized quickly. SafeNet Sentinel Hardware Key products include features that reduce development time by up to 60% compared to alternative solutions.

The geographic location for software sales is another factor to consider. If an application is to be sold into a region with exceptionally high software piracy rates, it may be worthwhile to incorporate maximum anti-piracy protection. SafeNet Unified Software Protection Solutions enable you to easily alter the levels of security at fulfillment time without requiring any development change.

Finally, total resources available must be considered to ensure developers are available to add the desired protection.

Anti-Piracy Solutions

SafeNet's dynamic software license management solutions are available with varying degrees of security and transparency. Our flexible technology is designed to easily integrate with your software package, either with the Sentinel API or by wrapping with the Sentinel Shell - or both. In addition, SafeNet Rights Management Professional Services are available to assist you with your customized anti-piracy implementation.

No anti-piracy solution can be guaranteed 100% hack-proof, but by incorporating MediaSentry investigation services into your software protection plan, you can further minimize the threat of software piracy. If a hack were to occur, MediaSentry services can quickly detect the hacked software online and prevent rampant dissemination.