Software is one of the most valuable technologies of the Information Age, running everything from PCs to the Internet. Unfortunately, because software is so valuable, and because computers make it easy to create an exact copy of a program in seconds, software piracy is widespread.

Piracy threatens development and innovation by cheating legitimate software developers out of the rights and rewards of a hard-earned work product. The loss of jobs, wages, revenues and critical investments in new technologies are just some of the destructive results of software piracy. It harms consumers, honest resellers, the software industry and the national and local economies.

All software piracy is illegal. And as the number of PCs and Internet use grow, the incidence of software piracy is growing, too. It is so important that law enforcement provide a balance between education and enforcement in dealing with software piracy.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) is responsible for investigating and prosecuting software piracy. I encourage the DOJ to track these criminals who undermine the stability of the burgeoning e-commerce industry and directly threaten innovative companies that help strengthen the U.S. economy.