Appointment and relevance

Many people are wondering how to check the software installed on the computer for legality. In fact, the term legal and illegal software (software) does not exist, as well as licensed and non-licensed software. Another nonexistent term is pirated programs. The meaning of such terms today is understood by all computer users.

In the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation there is article 146, which is responsible for copyright infringement. Article 146 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation has three parts. The first part is responsible for the assignment, the second for illegal use, the third if the violation was committed by a group of persons by prior agreement or by a person using official position. It turns out that articles 2 and 3 of article 146 of the Criminal Code regulate the punishment for using so-called non-licensed programs, that is, for violating the copyright of software developers. It should be noted that the second part provides for imprisonment for up to two years, and 3 part for a period of up to six years.

Then the question arises, how to understand what is a violation of the copyright of software developers? Violation of copyrights of software developers is not compliance with the terms of their license agreements. Many computer users do not read the license agreements of the programs when installing such programs, but it is in them that the conditions for the use, distribution and modification of software products are discussed.

Types of license agreements (licenses) for software can be divided into the following:

    * Paid;
    * Shareware;
    * Freely distributed.


Paid use only in case of payment, although many such programs have a demonstration period (from 7 to 30 days).
Conditionally free-of-charge suppose free-of-charge use only in case of rigid observance of conditions of the license agreement. Unfortunately, such licenses often explicitly prohibit the use of software in the organization. In the event that such programs are used, it is worth examining their license agreement.
Free-distributing licenses guarantee free use in the office and at home, so such programs can be easily used in organizations.