The company files lawsuit against a Verizon customer

May 6, 2015 04:27 GMT  ·  By
Microsoft is seeking damages from Windows piracy and could send some to prison
   Microsoft is seeking damages from Windows piracy and could send some to prison

Microsoft continues the fight against those who use its software without a license, and this week the company has filed a lawsuit at a district court in Seattle, claiming that a Verizon customer activated hundreds of apps that are very likely to be pirated.

In the lawsuit documents, Microsoft claims that a single Verizon IP address, 74.111.202.30, tried to activate pirated software, including hundreds of Windows 7 product keys. As TorrentFreak points out, Microsoft says that some of these keys might have been stolen from the company's supply chain.

Microsoft says that it has dedicated systems that analyze the IP of the computers that are trying to activate software and this way can detect whenever someone tries to use pirated keys for Windows or Office. Tracking down the IP is obviously just a matter of days because Microsoft files lawsuits against individuals, and with a court order, it can find the details of any customer in the United States only with this IP.

In this case, Verizon will be forced to disclose the details of its customer, so the pirate will most likely be brought to court in the coming weeks or months, with Microsoft seeking undisclosed damages.

More pirates might be tracked down

Microsoft hasn't specifically mentioned it, but the company says that its systems can detect unusual activity whenever someone tries to activate pirated software, so any pirate out there might be brought to court if they attempt to use apps that are not genuine.

“As part of its cyberforensic methods, Microsoft analyzes product key activation data voluntarily provided by users when they activate Microsoft software, including the IP address from which a given product key is activated,” the company explains.

“Microsoft’s cyberforensics have identified hundreds of product key activations originating from IP address 74.111.202.30, which is presently assigned to Verizon Online LLC.”

Windows has always been one of the most pirated software solutions out there, causing millions of dollars of losses to Microsoft because individuals used it without authorization. China is probably the best example, with former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer saying that, in this country, 9 out of 10 computers were running software without a genuine license.