Despite its illegality, the problem is often is overlooked. For example, an employee might copy software onto his laptop without realizing he needs an extra license, or an office may share a program over a network, not knowing it's is overusing its license.

In 1999, the Business Software Alliance reported Utah was at the top of the list of offenders with an estimated piracy rate of 33.7 percent.

That number has since dropped to 24.4 percent, but advocates for software companies are continually on the lookout to limit piracy and provide ways for consumers to report violations.

BSA enforcement director Jenny Blank encourages companies to proactively seek ways to understand copyright laws.

"I can tell you it is morally wrong, because it is," she said. "But I can also tell you it is very bad business, which I think resonates more with a lot of companies."

BSA has made reporting piracy accessible by providing a national hot line and a secure form at http://www.bsa.org. The software watchdog is aware people are leery of using the Web site, but Blank offers assurances that hits on the site are never tracked.

"When they call us for help, we want to give it, and we want them to feel comfortable calling us," she said.

The form asks a series of questions ranging from general company information to details of the software and licenses in question. Contact information is also requested, but Blank said it is always held as confidential and only used for follow-up investigation.

While many people brush software piracy aside, Blank suggests those who report it do so because they are thinking, "Hey, I have to pay for my software. You as a company are making money and you want people to pay for your products, yet you won't pay for the products you use. It's just not right."

Companies that knowingly violate copyright laws are being "penny-wise pound-foolish," Blank said, because those cases that go to court could result in penalties of up to $150,000 for every software license that was infringed - a cost significantly higher than each license would cost.

Legal experts say implementing honest business practices is the most important step to preventing piracy within an organization and avoiding litigation.

"Even though we can develop elaborate policies or even though the law can get very complex in these areas, if the company applies common sense and good faith to the basic concepts, there is not going to be a problem," said Jon Christiansen, a technology lawyer with the Salt Lake City-based first firm of Parsons, Behle and Latimer.

Christiansen acknowledges that many cases are taken to court, but most can easily be settled between the copyright holder and the company without incurring hefty penalties.

Prevention is the key, Christiansen said, and implementing a solid company policy is the first step.

"Companies that knowingly tolerate or allow infringement . . . are the companies that will be sued and have to buy their way out of the problem," he said. "It's not enough for a company to plead ignorance and turn a blind eye to things. It is critical to have the policy, communicate it to employees and enforce the policy."

Taking action

Creating a company policy is an essential part of preventing software piracy. Here are some things to consider when forming a policy within your organization:

* Centralize all your purchases through a purchasing department or other designated company authority.

* Require that all software purchase requests be in writing with department manager approval.

* Ensure the software being requested is on the company's list of supported software.

* Buy only from reputable, authorized sellers.

* Work only with reputable Application Service Providers (ASPs), and ensure you maintain all relevant licenses and documentation with that ASP.

* Get original user materials (such as manuals and registration cards), licenses and receipts for each purchase.

* Don't permit employees to buy software directly or charge it to their expense accounts.

* Ensure that legal software cannot be downloaded from the Internet by employees without special approval.

* Don't permit employees to download peer-to-peer (P2P) client software that may be used for trading copyrighted works.

Source: Business Software Alliance