How can I check for software piracy?

I need to upgrade to Win XP Pro. Recently, I've run across several "Eastern
European Companies" who can sell me this program for around $50. They say
it's original and comes with a "unique registration code" (key code?) that
will enable activation. They say the progams are genuine, fully functional,
not demos or academic versions. But, they say these are OEMs, i.e. no box,
packaging or manual. They also say these products can't be registered with
Microsoft in order to get technical support and rebates. Am I treading on
dangerous waters here? Is this legit? Or can I make one of these programs
work for me? How can I know if these programs are pirated? Anybody out
there have an answer? Here's a url of just one of the companies I found:
http://softforyou.biz/index.html

Thanks!

G
Thu Aug 26 07:16:35 CDT 2004

frostyplan wrote:
> I need to upgrade to Win XP Pro. Recently, I've run across several "Eastern
> European Companies" who can sell me this program for around $50. They say
> it's original and comes with a "unique registration code" (key code?) that
> will enable activation. They say the progams are genuine, fully functional,
> not demos or academic versions. But, they say these are OEMs, i.e. no box,
> packaging or manual. They also say these products can't be registered with
> Microsoft in order to get technical support and rebates. Am I treading on
> dangerous waters here? Is this legit? Or can I make one of these programs
> work for me? How can I know if these programs are pirated? Anybody out
> there have an answer? Here's a url of just one of the companies I found:
> http://softforyou.biz/index.html
>
> Thanks!

Since you cannot see the packaging or cd close enough you cannot tell,
you are taking a risk. If you can see the serial numbers on the cd and
the holograms then they might be legit but you are using copies that are
NOT intended for a user (OEM = original equipment manufacturer) and
definitely not for the U.S. market. If you are going to take the OEM
risk then do it at a local computer show where you probably are getting
a U.S. copy.

g-w

Sjonia
Thu Aug 26 09:38:43 CDT 2004

Don't take the risk. The software is being illegally distributed.
Purchasing from these companies not only puts you at risk of purchasing
illegal or counterfeit software, but also you risk having your credit card
number compromised and your identity stolen. It's really worth it to
purchase software from legitimate organizations. There are a lot of places
to purchase our software and they frequently offer discounts.

For more info and piracy resources, please visit:

http://www.microsoft.com/piracy/default.mspx
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/howtotell/ww/default.mspx


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"frostyplan" <frostyplan@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:BCC44A56-E61B-4CCB-9331-8EF3D2E504BE@microsoft.com...
>I need to upgrade to Win XP Pro. Recently, I've run across several
>"Eastern
> European Companies" who can sell me this program for around $50. They say
> it's original and comes with a "unique registration code" (key code?) that
> will enable activation. They say the progams are genuine, fully
> functional,
> not demos or academic versions. But, they say these are OEMs, i.e. no
> box,
> packaging or manual. They also say these products can't be registered
> with
> Microsoft in order to get technical support and rebates. Am I treading on
> dangerous waters here? Is this legit? Or can I make one of these
> programs
> work for me? How can I know if these programs are pirated? Anybody out
> there have an answer? Here's a url of just one of the companies I found:
> http://softforyou.biz/index.html
>
> Thanks!

N
Thu Aug 26 23:02:50 CDT 2004

In article <BCC44A56-E61B-4CCB-9331-8EF3D2E504BE@microsoft.com>, =?Utf-8?B?
ZnJvc3R5cGxhbg==?= says...

> But, they say these are OEMs, i.e. no box, packaging or manual.
> They also say these products can't be registered with
> Microsoft in order to get technical support and rebates.

There is no packaging, or documentation because OEM products are intended to
be sold with a computer. Indeed, I have two computers, and their OS CDs
can't be interchanged; the disks are keyed to the motherboards. I was
allowed to register these copies with both the computer manufacturer, and
with Microsoft. Since they aren't selling the computer with the OS, and they
are telling you that you can't get MSFT support, I would think that they
are, at the least, stolen goods (legitimate copies stolen from some
manufacturer), if not outright pirated goods (illegal copies).

--
Norman
~Win dain a lotica, En vai tu ri, Si lo ta
~Fin dein a loluca, En dragu a sei lain
~Vi fa-ru les shutai am, En riga-lint

frostyplan
Fri Aug 27 07:59:08 CDT 2004

Well, I'm getting enough "red flags" on this one, that I won't be ordering
from these companies . . . but HOW COME MICROSOFT HASN'T ISSUED ANY WARNINGS?
I've not heard of this kind of marketing before, but it's out there! Even
guys on eBay are auctioning LINKS for these sites, and then there's spam . .
. The way these ads are written, they look VERY legit. And when I call
repair shops they say, as long as I have an "activation code" everything will
be fine - go ahead! I'm in need of a new OS, and I can't afford the $179 . .
. so these deals look REAL attractive. I'd love to buy WIN XP Pro for $50!
It just seems that with the arrival of these Eastern Euopean Countries
competing for U.S. dollars, that SOMEBODY (like Microsoft) would do more to
inform people (in the news) about these scams. If it wasn't for info forums,
I could be another victim. Anyway, I appreciate your responses. Thanks
everyone.

G
Fri Aug 27 08:40:48 CDT 2004

frostyplan wrote:
> Well, I'm getting enough "red flags" on this one, that I won't be ordering
> from these companies . . . but HOW COME MICROSOFT HASN'T ISSUED ANY WARNINGS?
> I've not heard of this kind of marketing before, but it's out there! Even
> guys on eBay are auctioning LINKS for these sites, and then there's spam . .
> . The way these ads are written, they look VERY legit. And when I call
> repair shops they say, as long as I have an "activation code" everything will
> be fine - go ahead! I'm in need of a new OS, and I can't afford the $179 . .
> . so these deals look REAL attractive. I'd love to buy WIN XP Pro for $50!
> It just seems that with the arrival of these Eastern Euopean Countries
> competing for U.S. dollars, that SOMEBODY (like Microsoft) would do more to
> inform people (in the news) about these scams. If it wasn't for info forums,
> I could be another victim. Anyway, I appreciate your responses. Thanks
> everyone.

Microsoft has been shutting down eBay auctions of questionable software
for quite some time. The scams are usually reported in articles about
"gray market" goods as well as in scam articles. And OEM itself means it
is for original equipment manufacturers, not the public, and at least in
the "old" days it could be bought only with certain hardware like a HD,
motherboard or complete system.

g-w

Turan
Fri Aug 27 15:27:05 CDT 2004

> Purchasing from these companies not only puts you at risk of purchasing
> illegal or counterfeit software, but also you risk having your credit card
> number compromised and your identity stolen.

One more risk: you probably have to pay in advance, and if the company does
not deliver, you might have to sue somebody on the Balkan or in Russia. Good
luck!

HTH
Turan

Vanguardx
Fri Aug 27 20:58:29 CDT 2004

"G" <zz@nospam.com>
wrote in
news:ARGXc.522258$Gx4.189724@bgtnsc04-news.ops.worldnet.att.net:
> frostyplan wrote:
>> Well, I'm getting enough "red flags" on this one, that I won't be
>> ordering from these companies . . . but HOW COME MICROSOFT HASN'T
>> ISSUED ANY WARNINGS? I've not heard of this kind of marketing
>> before, but it's out there! Even guys on eBay are auctioning LINKS
>> for these sites, and then there's spam . . . The way these ads are
>> written, they look VERY legit. And when I call repair shops they
>> say, as long as I have an "activation code" everything will be fine
>> - go ahead! I'm in need of a new OS, and I can't afford the $179 .
>> . . so these deals look REAL attractive. I'd love to buy WIN XP Pro
>> for $50! It just seems that with the arrival of these Eastern
>> Euopean Countries competing for U.S. dollars, that SOMEBODY (like
>> Microsoft) would do more to inform people (in the news) about these
>> scams. If it wasn't for info forums, I could be another victim.
>> Anyway, I appreciate your responses. Thanks everyone.
>
> Microsoft has been shutting down eBay auctions of questionable
> software for quite some time. The scams are usually reported in
> articles about "gray market" goods as well as in scam articles. And
> OEM itself means it is for original equipment manufacturers, not the
> public, and at least in the "old" days it could be bought only with
> certain hardware like a HD, motherboard or complete system.
>
> g-w

Note that retail OEM versions *are* available for public purchase.
Volume OEM licenses are not for public purchase. Not everyone buys
pre-built computers. Some, like me, would like to spend the same amount
of money but get much better quality and more featured components in
their system and also know its exact setup. There are retail OEM
versions to purchase. They come in the wallet, have the hologrammed
license, and have the sticker which you affix to the computer (just be
sure NOT to toss the shrink wrap before removing the stick on it).
While OEM stands for Original Equipment Manufacturer, I doubt I'm in
that category but am mostly a jobber that fabs his own computers at home
and some of those used in our alpha test lab at work. I'm not
"manufacturing" to resell the computer to someone else, but I can still
legally purchase a retail copy of an OEM licensed version of Windows.
For the all of 2 telephone calls to their tech support included in the
full retail version, I'd rather save the money on getting a retail OEM
version and figure out the problem myself or get help here, using
Microsoft's knowledgebase, or hunting around in searchs and in expert
forums.

The requirement is that Microsoft requires that you purchase hardware
with a *retail* version of their OEM licensed Windows. However, their
OEM EULA is so vague in describing the hardware (other than separate
references that I found mentioning that it had to be "non-peripheral"
hardware) that you could simply buy an IDE or SATA cable (but not the
external power cable) to qualify as the accompanying hardware needed for
the retail OEM license (just buying a screw seemed to be pushing the
"non-peripheral" requirement). The EULA says the hardware and OEM
license must remain tied together (i.e., the OEM license follows the
qualifying hardware), so I get a cable because it won't break as would a
mechanical device, like a hard drive or CD-ROM drive (and the EULA does
*not* say the computer into which the qualifying hardware gets installed
and used for the OEM purchase then usurps that license so it then sticks
with the computer as some users claim simply because they read more into
the EULA than is actually written there). There is one user that has
posted in the newsgroups claiming that some 3rd level phone tech said
the hardware was no longer needed to purchase retail OEM licenses but
that is not a source with authority at Microsoft to degrade the EULA by
omitting the requirement; i.e., I haven't seen a public statement from
Microsoft claiming the qualifying hardware is no longer required when
purchasing a *retail* version of the OEM license. So, as far as I know,
you still have to purchase hardware with a retail OEM licensed version
of Windows.


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