Anti-piracy advert campaign used pirated photo

Anti-piracy adverts have always been a bit of a laughing stock, whether it was that giant, sweating blacksmith or the comically awful links in “you wouldn't steal a car,” but sometimes they're bad for other reasons, like being totally hypocritical. That's the situation the Business Software Alliance finds itself in today, as its Facebook advert looks to have used an image that wasn't properly licensed.

The image is one of a pot of gold, with four leaf clovers on the side and a message that reads: “Your pot of gold is right here baby [sic]. Report unlicensed software and GET PAID. Start at nopiracy.org.” It's designed to entice you into ratting out your friends and colleagues for using pirated software, with the promise of financial reward.

As 1984 as that might be, it's worth looking closer at the advert as that pot of gold looks a little odd. In-fact, the clovers look strange too. The reason? They're made of cake and icing, because this is an image taken from CakeCentral, taken presumably without permission. Doing what all good journalists do, TorrentFreak chased down the story and asked BSA for a comment. While none was received, the advert mysteriously disappeared shortly after.

Fortunately, the Internet never forgets

KitGuru Says: Presumably the BSA will be contacting Cake Central to offer a license fee? And TorrentFreak deserves a bounty for reporting it, right? 

Become a Patron!