With the holiday shopping season underway, the Business Software Alliance—the leading voice of the world’s software industry—today announced the results of a national poll gauging the purchasing intentions of college students. The findings shed light on the often unorthodox and risky methods employed by many students in obtaining software at low or no cost. But, results also indicate that being educated about the potential risks of illegal software can impact their purchasing decisions.

The poll, conducted by Washington, D.C.-based RT Strategies during the week of November 10, asked 400 currently enrolled college students about their plans to buy computers and software. Nearly three-quarters (74 percent) of participants expect to purchase or receive computer hardware or software over the next year. An even greater percentage—79 percent—expect to be “involved” in such a purchase this holiday season by advising a friend or relative on a purchase, making a purchase for themselves, or buying someone else a gift.

On the subject of potential software piracy, 60 percent of the students told pollsters they “know where to go on the Internet to download software for free or at a discount.” As documented in a recent BSA report, buying or downloading software from questionable Internet sites can expose users to hidden cyber security threats such as viruses, spyware and “back doors” for identity thieves. Many sites are also hotbeds of software piracy, which is a federal crime that carries serious penalties. Nevertheless, almost one-third (30 percent) of respondents said that “most students … don’t purchase software from an authorized source anymore, because the same software is usually available for free or at a discount from an unauthorized source.”

What sources do students turn to for pirated software? Though the most popular response was “friends and family,” the students as a group demonstrated encyclopedic knowledge of where to find pirated software. Asked to identify the software sources they might use, 82 percent named an array of questionable sources, including peer-to-peer sources such as Limewire and BitTorrent; shopping sites such as iOffer.com and eBay; and classified ad sites like craigslist. Only 18 percent cited legitimate sources only.

However, when the students were exposed to the list of potential risks from using unauthorized software, 43 percent said they would be more cautious, and 31 percent said they would “never” obtain software from an unauthorized source. Only 12 percent were unfazed, telling questioners they would still borrow or download software from unauthorized sources.

“The results of our holiday survey show reasons for both concern and optimism,” said Rodger Correa of BSA. “College students are some of the savviest consumers of computers and software. We want to make sure students, their families, and friends who may be tempted to obtain software from unauthorized sources will stop and think: Is this legitimate software? Am I about to jeopardize an expensive piece of hardware to save a few bucks on software? If I put this program on my computer, will I expose my personal and financial information to the crooks who supplied this pirated software?

“The poll shows that most college students know where to go for easy access to pirated software,” Correa added. “But it also shows that, once they are educated about the risks, they are far more likely to realize that the risks outweigh the potential benefits.”

The earlier BSA report, entitled Online Software Scams: The Threat to Your Security, provides more information on the scope of the problem, as well as consumer tips to avoid piracy problems, such as buying from only legitimate sources; taking advantage of free software updates from the original publishers; being wary of products

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