With all the focus on cyber security and mega-breeches of information technology systems, many companies are looking for answers to this seemingly unlimited risk exposure. Software inventories and compliance are areas getting increased attention.
Comparing the installed software and usage levels to existing licenses and fee structures can not only provide a measure of protection by finding rogue software, it can also lead to efficiencies. Why bother?
Globally, as much as 43% of all installed software is counterfeit or unlicensed. If that statistic was not troubling enough consider this: A just-released IDC study reveals a 0.79 positive-correlation between the rate of unlicensed software and the presence of malware, a correlation higher than the correlation between smoking and lung cancer or education and incomes. So it is a good bet that many of those computers with unlicensed software also have malware already installed. It may be time to find out if your company, or client, has sufficient internal controls to be sure that all installed software is the real thing.
https://www.bsa.org/~/media/Files/Research%20Papers/IDCMalware/FinalIDCMalwareWPJan2015.pdf