A full audit of all software used by the government is being conducted as part of the major push to rid out the use of unlicensed software programs in the bureaucracy amid the proliferation of illegal software especially with the increased digitalization in the country.
Optical Media Board (OMB) Chairman and CEO Anselmo Adriano revealed this during a webinar Wednesday on “ASEAN Safeguard” as he also presented the continuing software piracy in the country as more transactions are done online during this pandemic.
From January to June this year, OMB reported seizure of 11,941 pieces of storage devices; 100,257 pieces of black this, and 54,330 pieces of pirated DVDs.
“We are now moving for a full audit of all the software, being used in the entire government sector,” said Adriano noting the audit is an inter-agency effort to cleanse government from the use of unlicensed software.
Adriano shared that in one of his conversations with officials of the Department of Budget and Management, he gathered that the budget for purchase of computer hardware does not include a budget for the purchase of licensed software.
With no software, the hardware cannot be of use. To run the hardware, government agencies are forced to make use of unlicensed software or illegitimate software.
“That is where the problem begins. So, why not make it a policy when an agency proposes to buy a hardware then should also be a budget for legitimate software and that all suppliers must also have license,” he said.
A BSA study two years ago showed that 64 percent of companies in the Philippines are using unlicensed software.
Meantime, BSA Senior Director Tarun Sawney also said at the webinar that The BSA Software Alliance, the leading advocate for the global software industry, is building on its Legalize & Protect campaign with its ASEAN Safeguard initiative, offering free consultation to 40,000 companies across Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines.
Of these companies, Sawney said 10,000 are from the Philippines. The companies BSA is reaching out to are those it has identified as high risk and particularly vulnerable to cyber threats, and ASEAN Safeguard is designed to support them on their journey towards full software legalization.
Sawney explained that the use of unlicensed software also deprives companies of protection from cyber-attacks.
Data from BSA members including IBM and McAfee shows that cyber security threats are exacerbated by the widespread use of unlicensed software in Southeast Asia, which is often packaged with malware or contains security vulnerabilities that leave devices open to attack.
Currently, 64 percent of companies in the Philippines are estimated to be using unlicensed software.
“Since the Covid-19 pandemic dramatically changed how people work, BSA has made cybersecurity our primary focus in the ASEAN region,” said Sawney. “With the rise in teleworking via online platforms and the normalization of work-from-home policies, businesses are exposed to higher risks of cyber fraud than ever before, and these online attacks have become more complex and damaging. The ASEAN Safeguard initiative seeks to promote the use of licensed software among businesses, support them throughout the software licensing process, and help them prevent cyberattack damage.”
Adriano also noted that OMB has been vigilant where the sale of unlicensed software, and other counterfeit items is prevailing, especially now that almost all purchases are done online registration.
OMB licensing division has been thoroughly reviewing and assessing applications, especially importation permit applications to arrange to assure that no pirated copies of movies or unlicensed software will lead to any country.
Even with several laws on intellectual property rights protection, he said the Philippines still lacked paramount measures to counter cybercrimes, especially in the field of digital piracy.
“As the chair and CEO of the league on anti-media piracy agency in the Philippines, I see how the country's struggling to address the issues of piracy,” he said.