Online piracy

An image of a qbittorrent interface; a popular torrenting program due to its free and open-sourced design.
qBittorrent is one of the most widely used torrenting programs due to its free and open-source nature.

Online piracy or software piracy is the practice of downloading and distributing copyrighted works digitally without permission, such as music, movies or software.[1][2] The principle behind piracy has predated the creation of the Internet.[not verified in body] Despite its explicit illegality in many developed countries, online piracy is still widely practiced, due to the ease with which it can be done, the often defensible ethics behind it, and access to files that would normally cost money or be otherwise unobtainable. Some of the most pirated software includes Adobe software and Microsoft Office.[not verified in body]

  1. ^ Choi, David Y.; Perez, Arturo (April 2007). "Online piracy, innovation, and legitimate business models". Technovation. 27 (4): 168–178. doi:10.1016/j.technovation.2006.09.004. ISSN 0166-4972.
  2. ^ "Definition of: Internet piracy". PC Magazine Encyclopedia. Retrieved October 26, 2018.