This was a broadcast e-mail I sent out as manager of a system administration
department.  It turned out that the culprit was one of my own staff whom
I'd repeatedly warned about this behaviour, whom I'd inherited as an 
employee from my predecessor as department head.  That person quit just
before I was able to complete the process of firing him.  --RM]



Date: Thu, 22 Jul 1999 16:44:18 -0700
From: Rick Moen <[e-mail address omitted]>
To: [company mailing list of all the members of my department]
Cc: [managers, HR]
Subject: Software bootlegging -- departmental policy

Monday, I backed up [person]'s data files to an encrypted archive on mcp.
Initially, the copy failed in the middle, because Windows Explorer
crashed, which turned out to be caused by McAfee VirusScan.
VirusScan is a (rather mediocre) proprietary commercial virus-checker
and remover.  It had been installed onto [person]'s workstation within the
past week.  The product is freely downloadable from the Internet, but
must be site-licenced.  [company name] does not at this time
site-licence VirusScan.  The installation was therefore illegal --
bootlegged.

There are severe legal penalties for companies that bootleg proprietary
commercial software.  Typically, a company raided and audited (by the
Software Publishing Association or Federal Trade Commission) for such
activity is subjected to public humiliation, a large fine, and the
obligation to pay full list price for all unlicenced software found on
the premises.  People get summarily fired.

If the raid happens to be by the FTC, their first step after finding
evidence of illegal software is to impound all computers.
[company name] does not allow software bootlegging, and neither do I.
Please note the following points of policy:

1.  No sysadmin may install unlicenced proprietary software (except as
described in point 3, below).  This includes _downloadable_ proprietary
software such as:

  - WordPerfect Personal Edition for Linux
  - Star Office Personal Edition for Linux
  - McAfee VirusScan for any platform

All of the above are illegal at [company name].  Please note that
shrink-wrapped (full) editions -- WordPerfect Personal _Retail_,
WordPerfect Server Retail, Star Office Professional Edition -- are legal
for business use, BUT that McAfee VirusScan absolutely requires a site
licence.  Period.  Even though it can be downloaded "free" from the
Internet.

2.  Any sysadmin who sees any of the above products, or other likely
unlicenced proprietary software, installed at [company name], must inform me
immediately, so corrective action can be taken.

3.  We are glad to help employees purchase and install proprietary
software required for their jobs.  If the sysadmins have a copy of the
product (licenced or not), we will install our copy immediately upon
written (e.g., e-mail) notice of a purchase order by our buyers (such as
Wendy).

4. If in doubt, please do not hesitate to check with me.
[name of CTO] tells me we are in discussions for a VMware site licence, so
we will regard that one as OK to install.  However, please note that
proprietary software installed inside a VMware image (including MS
Windows 98 and MS Office 97) must also be licenced per workstation.

--
Rick Moen, Chief System Administrator, [company name]
[contact info]







From rick Mon Mar 11 08:48:21 2002
Date: Mon, 11 Mar 2002 08:48:21 -0800
To: social@linux.ie
Subject: Re: [ILUG-Social] Legislative Alert

Quoting kevin lyda (kevin@suberic.net):

> i love the bsa.  i hope they crack down harder.  people using closed
> source s/w in violation of the terms on which it offered are breaking
> the law and should be punished.  i think every company using such s/w
> should be checked for compliance, have a staff member who's primary
> (sole?) duty is to insure license compliance and conduct quarterly  
> audits on everyone's computer.
> 
> go bsa!

Yes, indeed.

When I was chief sysadmin at $PRIOR_FIRM, an allegedly Linux-based
company, I quickly realised that various departments were freely
bootlegging sundry pieces of proprietary software, all of it Win32
stuff.  Some of this was even being done by one of my staffers, whom I  
was preparing to fire for it when he resigned and went to Apple
Computer.

I tried to put a screeching halt to the practice.  I tried to collect   
copies of all proprietary software purchase documentation and licensing,
and was then going to implement a modest audit regime.

And, you know what?  I was stonewalled by upper management and by
various department heads.  They gave vague reassurances and no
documentation whatsoever, and just refused to cooperate.

Allegations that the fundamental problem was a complete and total lack
of management integrity are... unconfirmed at this time.  ;->

-- 
Cheers,                 "Heedless of grammar, they all cried 'It's him!'"
Rick Moen                       -- R.H. Barham, _Misadventure at Margate_
rick@linuxmafia.com