Don't copy that floppy.

When was the last time you or someone you know committed a felony? Probably this morning, and you may not have even realized it.

What may seem to be a favor to an office colleague or a cost-cutting measure could jeopardize a small business or cost it dearly in fines. Today, 35% of the software in use in the United States is pirated. That is, the software is duplicated or used in violation of its copyright. This felony is committed by innocent--and sometimes not so innocent--people who make copies for co-workers or bring software from home to use on computers in the workplace.

"Many people don't see the harm in it," says Robert Holleyman, president of the Business Software Alliance (BSA), which represents large software publishers such as Microsoft and Lotus. "Business owners would never think of asking their employees to steal computers, but many of those same businesspeople don't think twice about buying one or two programs and duplicating them for all the PCs in their office."

Software programs such as Microsoft Office or WordPerfect are covered by U.S. copyright laws. Each software package is licensed for use on one computer unless a network version is purchased. If you have copied a program to put on two machines at the same time, you have committed a felony and the "software police" could soon be knocking on your door.

The software industry accounts for $36.7 billion of the U.S. economy, According to the BSA, software piracy has become a $15 billion problem worldwide. The organization's anti-piracy hotline (800-688-BSAI) received more than 10,000 calls in 1994 alone. The BSA and similar organizations such as the Software Publishers Association are stepping up their efforts to monitor small businesses for software piracy.

The consequences of pirating software vary. Federal courts can levy statutory damages of up to $100,000 per program copied. In some instances, there are federal felony provisions that carry five years in prison and up to $250,000 in fines. The BSA does the initial investigation, and with a court order and the support of U.S. marshals, conducts a raid on targeted businesses.

Realistically speaking, however, the BSA has an incredible task ahead. Checking thousands of businesses that have millions of PCs requires considerable resources. Since its inception in 1988, the BSA has filed about 600 lawsuits worldwide, hardly an overwhelming number. The fact is, few people are actually prosecuted each year for software copyright infringement, and most offenses don't warrant maximum fines or ail time. That's why software piracy persists.

Some major corporations have network administrators to monitor what software is on their computer networks, but small businesses often cannot afford such policing. Skip Mason, president of Diggin' It Up, a small African American research firm in Atlanta, monitors his office computer system each week.

"We don't allow any of our people to bring software from home to use in the office--not even games," says Mason. "I know I wouldn't like it if someone was stealing part of my product and a percentage of my profits. So we respect the software makers."

Small firms like Mason's can benefit from the BSA publication, A Guide to Software Management. The guide provides basic information about creating systems for auditing software on computer networks and developing company policies on software use. The BSA offers the guide free to anyone.