Squealing for Dollars: The Canadian Alliance Against Software Theft wants more people to rat on companies using bootleg software. Its solution? Set up a new snitch-line campaign and -- for better or worse -- pay cash rewards to tipsters.
Financial Post Business Magazine, December 2006

A new radio ad recently hit the southern Ontario airwaves, directing listeners to turn in their employers. "If you are or have worked for a company that is copying software illegally, that company is stealing," bellowed the announcer. "Report software piracy confidentially and you may be eligible for a reward of up to $50,000."

The ad, which ran in September, urged listeners to report piracy on a confidential toll-free number and website operated by the Canadian Alliance Against Software Theft (CAAST), in conjunction with its Washington, D.C.-based sister outfit, the Business Software Alliance (BSA). It also carried a stern warning for employers. "Unless you have no current or former unhappy employees, you're only one phone call away from being the target of a CAAST/BSA investigation."

CAAST was created in 1990 and is made up of software publishers such as Adobe Systems Inc. and Microsoft Canada. It has the power to sue companies that use pirated software, and in rare cases, gets permission from the Federal Court of Canada to raid company premises to search for unlicensed software. It has used a snitch line before, too. But the new campaign marks a shift in tactics. An employee who squeals no longer has to be motivated by moral indignation about theft or the sheer pleasure of causing distress to the boss -- the tipster is now eligible for a cash reward. David Majors, an attorney with BSA who also does work for CAAST, says it's all about catching more pirates. "We don't care why people report piracy," says Majors. "What we care about is whether the information is reliable. Often it is former or current employees that provide the best information."

In going this route, however, CAAST is following a long line of companies and governments that have used snitch lines to collect info on everything from welfare fraud to illegal accounting -- often with mixed results. Encouraging people to snitch fosters suspicion among co-workers and citizens, critics note. And while no one condones illegal copying of software, if adding a reward brings in more tips, it also creates a greater opportunity for confusion about the intended message and potential misuse of the process.

Andrea Wojnicki, assistant professor of marketing at the University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management, says CAAST's ad falters because it doesn't call attention to the message that cracking down on software piracy is the right thing to do. "Many consumers like to act as vigilantes and police the marketplace on behalf of others," Wojnicki says. "[CAAST] missed an opportunity here to get the attention of those consumers and motivate them to make the call."

Wayne Poncia, a partner with eTraffic Solutions, a Victoria-based online-learning content provider, also takes issue with CAAST's strategy. Poncia's company got in trouble with CAAST in 2004 for using pirated copies of Microsoft and Symantec programs, and paid a $12,500 penalty. The investigation was a result of a tip -- Poncia suspects an unhappy ex-employee. Nevertheless, he feels CAAST would be more effective if it softened its approach. "Negative ads and scare tactics don't work," he says. "CAAST would have a far broader impact if it collaborated with companies and assisted them in monitoring their software, instead of trying to get employees to rat on their companies."

CAAST's website does offer links to audit software that allows users to verify if their software is licensed. But according to BSA's Majors, it will stick with the reward program, which has already brought in "a fairly significant increase" in tips. Which only goes to show, if you want to attract rats, there's no better bait than a pile of cold, hard cash.